Intro So, I've planned out a few board games, card games, miniatures wargames, and related over the years -- in part or (almost) in full -- and I seem to have similar thought processes and routines each time, all the way through to the rough play-testing phase (meaning, with a mock-up of the game). I assume this post is helpful to others, not just myself, and might be useful this time around, too, with my space zombies wargame, likely at the skirmish level.
Ideas The very first thing you should do is write down ideas (long-hand or digitally). And, if it's not the first thing, it's in conjunction with a few other early processes, but for the sake of a simple step-by-step guide, I'll run with this (and it's certainly in line with how I often work).
This initial process, because it's likely that you'll think of more ideas later or re-work something at a later stage (if nothing else, simply because an idea shifts or becomes meaningless later on), could take anywhere from 2 hours to 2 years. It depends on how quick you are at thinking and writing, and just how many ideas you have. Realistically, this process is likely to take a few hours, or a few days.
However, there is something important to mention, and this is a nice place for it. You might want to leave a few days between steps or mico-steps (such as between Ideas and Early Planning) when designing a game. The reason is that I find just having a few days to let the project sit in my head as I go about my daily life actually helps to draw connections or think of new ideas, or just to literally sit and think on it to see how I feel -- literally taking a step back and seeing the bigger picture. A few days will do the trick, though it's not a requirement.
(For what it's worth, the same sort of advice is given for writers, as well, such as with lore and worldbuilding. Just writing flat-out, non-stop often backfires, actually. I even recall some mention of studies showing that the creative brain works at its best when you're not really thinking, which is why it's common for genius ideas to strike when you're doing something repetitive and mindless, such as Darwin walking around his garden, Einstein stamping patents, J.K. Rowling sitting on a train, or Tolkien grading student papers. Notice that they got some of their best ideas when just doing some kind of simple daily task/job. I assume this is what's happening when you take a few days away from whatever you're working on, and then you come back with even more ideas in your head, even though you weren't actively thinking about it. Of course, I'm not putting us in the same camp as those writers and scientists, I'm just saying that the same logic applies to all levels of creativity, low and high. So, if you want to work at your best, you should repeat some boring tasks now and again, or just take a walk to really re-energise your brain for more game design.)
As a result, you might spend 1-2 hours on the first day, and 1-2 hours on the third day, with a break on the second day just to collect your thoughts. You might even have many ideas to get on the paper if it's a big/complex game, so you might require many sessions/days. (Naturally, not everybody has 2 hours to write/think, so you can simply adjust this system accordingly. Either way, it should take no more than 7 days of real time for this first step or mico-step of just getting the core ideas on paper.)
My 'space zombies' wargame idea is actually a good example. I've had a 'zombies' idea in my head for a few years now. And, that's another thing: if you have an idea in your head, and it won't go away, it's best to just listen to it. So, I'm finally listening to it and taking it very seriously. However, the 'space' part of the 'zombies game' came later, just yesterday. It came largely out of necessity, because generic, zombies-on-the-ground has already been done before, and I couldn't find a way to make that hyper interesting. Then, it hit me to make a galactic-level zombie infection and use sci-fi models (aka space monsters and space military) instead of generic 17th-century type models (aka farmers, etc.), or else, generic 21st-century guys. That naturally popped the gag of 'space zombies' into my head, which actually sounded cool, though a bit on the nose. I mean, there is already the joke about 'space Communists' (Tau from Warhammer 40k), 'space elves' (Eldar from Warhammer 40k), and 'space orcs' (Orks from Warahmmer 40k... yes, I'm also beginning to see a pattern here). Warahmmer 40k even has 'Egyptian Terminators in space' (Necrons).
I also have a strange fading half-memory of vampires in space, but not sure if that's just a dream I had or from a TV show or something (although, Blood Angels from Warahmmer 40k are kind of like military-grade vampires in space). I guess, the rule is... if Tolkien invented it, then it can be thrown into space and be made ten times cooler. Well, Tolkien didn't invent zombies, but the same logic applies to all folklore/mythos, etc. (And, I guess Groot is like the Ents in space. I love Groot even more now.) It actually makes perfect psycholoigcal sense, and is not unheard of to have various monsters and real Earth creations in space, ranging from tanks to dinosaurs. (Actually, the idea of humans being infected in space is not even close to a new idea, though they are typically just generic zombie infections, not actual zombie monsters. Anyway, the point is: you need to get hold of a cool idea, and then run with it.)
Now, I should clarify this stage: when I say, 'ideas', I mean everything from core mechanics to subtext (as in storytelling theme/symbolism) to an outline of the central lore (background/fluff/worldbuilding/character). There are at least 20 major items for the ideas list. For example, at the top of the page (that is, my Word document), I like to type out the central inspiration for the project for overall design, feel, and functionality, be it another board game, a video game, and/or a movie. This all adds to the singular vision, which is key. I find writing it down to crystallise it helps just to get it out of the way/out of your head -- and if you ever start going off-track, you can look back at your ideas list/notes and remember what you're aiming at.
I typically rush out a list of items, because I'm working through it all in my mind and just want to get as many tags/descriptions, etc. down as possible. Then, I slowly add it to it and detail it out a bit more. I'll pretty much list all key details, such as the kind of game, the core components, the core mechanics, the setting, the scale/scope, the primary player interactions (such as things like currency), the tonality (serious or comedic, etc.), the number of players, A.I. systems, gameplay purpose/winning conditions, and much more.
Note: If you're making a game to sell, then your primary considerations are likely to be design elements for marketing, such as age range, overarching game type, and duration. Those should be at the top of your ideas list, and should all nicely connect with one another (at least roughly). Everything else will be designed around exactly where the game will sit on the shelf, so to speak. (If you're selling your game and don't have such considerations in mind, then this is largely moot, though such is likely to matter at some point down the line.)
​
Early Planning Not surprisingly, the early planning stage feeds directly off from the ideas stage. Here we actually detail out all of our ideas, and start putting them into action.
This process takes days, if not weeks, depending on the project size and complexity, and how much time you put in each day, and where you want to focus, and just how much work you want done before moving onto step two (my feeling is you should do as little as possible, as it's always best to get the ball rolling, and everything interacts with everything else, anyway, so it's not useful to spend weeks on just a single element this early on, as it might go or need radically changing, anyway).
Your focus here should be two-fold: first, you should detail out all key info, including the entire lore/story and related for your world and characters and setting, and stack that with the core game mechanics and how it actually plays, and the purpose of the game. Second, you should map out just how the game plays, how the game might look, and how the player interacts with it.
Sometimes, these two stages might heavily overlap, and you might get it all done within a few hours. On the other hand, they could be very distinct stages. Either way, I believe they form step one for most board games and related games.
Either way, what matters here is getting to a point where you can actually visualise most of the game and have a clear understanding of how it works and why, so that you could easily explain it to somebody. Of course, it won't be playable in real space yet, nor even functional from a mechanical standpoint, even on paper. It's just the foundations, but everything should be falling into place now.
Having said that, this is also around the time when things can start to fall apart, which is common if you lack a singular vision for the project, or have fundamentally done something wrong in terms of the core mechanics/design, or maybe you just don't like the general direction. That's why this step is so important. Any problems in your mind need to be fixed here and now if possible, including starting over, re-working ideas, breaking each piece down and building it back up again, and changing the tonality or scope of the project, or even game type.
By the end of the first step, you'll also get a rough idea of the components you want to use and will have started to map out their functions (such as decks and dice). This is good, because you're going to need to buy and/or make such components soon in order to play-test (though there are other ways to play-test, as well), and then either play it or sell it.
I should mention that it's possible that you really love the project and how it's shaping up, but something isn't right, but you don't know what's wrong. In this case, you should just carry on, as it might fix itself by some later stage, or at least reveal itself. Otherwise, if all goes according to plan, you should have a clear vision for your game, and you should roughly know what is required and how you want it to play, and have all the required backstory for the characters and such.
Of course, you won't actually know how it plays yet -- that comes over the following steps. You also won't have novel-length backstories written out for your hero and such just yet (again, that comes next, assuming you want/need that much detail. Personally, I don't suggest too much detail). You also won't have much info on the maths/probability and such -- that comes later, when you start to actually map out the dice/related mechanics and functions, etc. However, I think messing around with dice and other core mechanics early on is a good idea to try and force some ideas out of you about just how the game will play (unless you already have a concrete dice system in your head from another game, then that's fine, but it's quite uncommon. Typically, lots of testing is required to find your game's voice, as it were). Although I've mostly spoken in terms of board games and wargames, such applies to all (or at least most) types of games.

Expedition report from Rift Group 4
Report carried out by Lieutenant Marvin Bailey
Report states: Peaceful contact with the local town of Una has ended in failure. Upon nearing the gates, the elves demanded RG-4 to identify themselves and after identification, they opened fire on with bows, crossbows, and scorpions. RG4 retaliated by opening fire with its 50mm chain gun, destroying parts of the wall, killing an unknown number of defenders, and destroying their heavy defenses. The initial shock from the chain gun froze the defenders, allowing RG-4 to vacate the area with minimum damage and no losses taken. This was the first unsuccessful interaction with the local populace since the beginning of the expedition and the Rift Group program and it shows that not all natives will be pleased with REC's arrival.
Other news: The enemy force on the other side of the North Alston river has not shown any signs of movement. Moreover, drone footage shows a number of the local populace leaving the Meilume capital and Una across the river, further suggesting that the Imperial army wishes to fortify and wall off the area between the two Alston rivers with the intention of boxing the REC before attacking. CIA sources can confirm this is the case. As far as the Rosian vassal kingdoms are concerned, RG-1, upon making successful contact with the border town of Afa, has sent a platoon, led by lieutenant James Wilson, to the Alston capital of Olinor where they made contact with the king of Alston, Thavok Zorgen. After a number of debates, king Thavok has agreed to accompany the platoon to the duchies of Zirith, Dothen, and Elarith, as well as the kingdom of Opherin to convince the dukes and kind Ostontul to attend a meeting with ambassador Eugene Anderson. Additional transportation will be provided should it be necessary.
30th day of late yellow season
Elyana, Empire of Light
"So.", said the chained human, "Is it my turn to pick the nail or yours?". The torturer responded by punching him in the face. The prisoner spat out a piece of his tooth before answering, "C'mon, you're supposed to be consistent. It's nail, nail, cut, punch. The teeth come later when all the nails are gone. Everyone knows that.". The torturer punched him again. "There you go again, messing up the consistency. I think I know why you work in this shit hole now."
The torturer wanted to hit him again, but a voice stopped him, "Enough!". A moment later, two elves walked into the room.
"Great General Laeroth.", the torturer said as he bowed.
"How is the questioning, Maul?", Laeroth asked.
"Not well, my lord. This human is proving to be a greater challenge than I had anticipated. All I got was a name. Jack Mitchell."
Laeroth sighed as he approached the chained-up human. His body was cut in several places and half of his fingernails have been removed. In addition, he was missing two teeth and bleeding from his mouth and nose. Yet he still denies Maul. As much as it pained Laeroth to admit it, he was impressed. Any Rosian or even elf would have broken by now. What made this human different?
"Jack Mitchell.", Laeroth said, making Jack lift his head and smile.
"What's up?", Jack asked.
"The ceiling.", Laeroth answered, making Jack laugh. "What is humorous?"
"Maul over there said the same thing.", Jack replied as he wheezed, "You sure you're not related? You got the same shade."
This made Maul mad as he grabbed his hammer, "You insolent savage!"
"Calm yourself.", Laeroth said, "I still need this human alive. High mage Gunru, you have my permission.".
"Yes, general.", said Gunru. He was one of the seven high mages of the empire in North Altia, second only to the grand mage Ishton. Each high mage is able to use more than one type of magical ability. Usually, a mage is only able to use one ability from a single spirit. The mages of Vita can be healers or they can use their power to give life to made objects. This way they can create their own army, however, the mage has to remain alive in order for the creature to remain alive, and if the creature is destroyed the life will return back to its source. The mages of Elendi can use one of the various elements, such as wind, fire, water, and so on. One other ability the high mages possess is 'Mind read'. By focusing their spiritual energy on the mind of the target, they can visualize their knowledge.
"What the hell are you doing?", Jack asked as Gunru grabbed his head with both hands, "I mean I'm flattered but I'm into women, just so you know."
Gunru closed his eyes and white energy started appearing from his hands. That energy went into Jack's head, which remained perfectly still as this occurred. Gunru entered his mind and began to project Jack's memories, thoughts, and knowledge around him. Laeroth just watched. He himself couldn't see unless Gunru gave the knowledge to him. But he did see something that disturbed him. Gunru began to twitch. A twitching that turned to shake as his eyes opened and quickly pulled back while panting and holding his head as though he had a headache.
"Gunru.", Laeroth called, "Tell me, what have you seen?"
Gunru shook and could barely grasp the words to speak, "T-T-Terrible things. A mistake. All of this was a mistake."
"Show me."
"No!", Gunru yelled immediately, "You must not. I could not get all the details myself. You will go insane."
"I must know our enemy. Even if it is a little, I must know. Gunru, you must show me."
Gunru greatly hesitated and opposed this. But at the same time, he knew if anyone was able to take the strain, it was Laeroth, the most loyal servant of the empire. "Very well. I shall show you as much as I can. Forgive me."
As Gunru placed his hands on Laeroth's head, the same energy went into it. Laeroth opened his eyes and found himself on a field of battle. Two sides were fighting, humans. One side had blue clothing and the other was red, both fighting with cannons and boomsticks, but nothing else. The blue-clothed soldiers appeared to be winning and they charged the red ones, all while carrying a flag. Red and white stripes with stars. It was brutal. What could it mean?
Night turned to day over and over again, until another battle occurred. Same thing, broomsticks, and cannons, but they fought each other. Once again, there was a flag with stars and stripes but now there were two. A civil war? Hundreds of thousands of men died all for what?
Fast forward, Laeroth appeared in another field, but considerably more terrifying. It was a field of black mud, ash, and blood as far as the eye could see. Thousands upon thousands of bodies piled up around giant cannons that fired and destroyed castles. He could see waves of soldiers running forward at their dug-in enemies. They fell by the dozen until a few lucky ones reached the line and engaged in a brutal brawl. The fighting kept escalating until a massive white cloud filled the battlefield and everyone caught in started choking and dying.
Once the smoke cleared, Laeroth could see hundreds of thousands, no, millions of soldiers and armored beasts marching across a field. They fought another gigantic army, one Laeroth thought could never exist. Millions of troops met on the battlefield and slaughtered one another as the metal monsters spat fire and thousands of iron wyverns fought in the air. Massive ships of steel fired enormous cannons of steel at one another as hundreds of iron rods fell from the sky and flattened the cities below.
Closing and opening his eyes one more time he saw a city. A large city with towers of stone and glass that pierced the clouds. But then he saw it get destroyed as it was engulfed in a literal sea of flames. All of those people were dead in an instant, and in place of the city was a gigantic cloud in the shape of a mushroom.
The day turned to night again as Laeroth was lifted into the air and observed the world change. The nations fought one another while also existing in peace. Cities became massive and their armies even more powerful. But then, the fires came. The great cities turned to a smoldering pile of ash as they turned on one another in the name of 'salvation'. War, disease, poverty, entire civilizations were whipped out and empires started to fall. But in this chaos, something was born. The petty rivalry of the great powers vanished and united they led their armies and pulled the corruption by its roots. It took them decades but they did it. And now united, they rebuilt their homes. The world was not at peace but they made the most of it. At least until they showed up. The rift opened, the invasion failed and now an angered giant prepares to take its vengeance and punish them for their crimes.
Gunru stopped sending energy into Laeroth's mind and let go of his head. Laeroth bent over and panted. His heart was racing and his nose bleeding. He could not believe what he saw. Was there really no hope? Was this war lost before it even began? How was he to win? He wasn't, but he knew he couldn't just give up. His pride as a warrior and a soldier wouldn't let him. But more than that, it was Canus. His maniacal nature coupled with fear will only make things worse if he were to find out. Furthermore, the Inquisition will most likely pull strings and keep the war going for their sick and twisted games. Laeroth knew he had to come up with something, otherwise, the empire will crumble.
"General, are you alright.", Maul asked.
"I am fine Maul.", Laeroth answered, "Take the human back to the cell and treat his wounds. I will let you know what I want with him next later."
"Yes, my lord.", Maul said as he gestured to the guards to help him.
"Gunru."
"Yes, general?", Gunru answered.
"You must not speak of this to anyone. Not even the emperor. This stays between us. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, general."
"Good. Now excuse me, I must clean myself and prepare for the future.". Laeroth left the torture chamber and climbed up the steps to the halls. On his way to his personal chamber, he could feel a strange sensation run down his spine. The effects of the mind read? No, this was something else. He made a random turn and walked down a narrow hallway. After taking a few steps, he prepared a knife and waited. Soon, a cloaked individual suddenly appeared from behind the corner and started running away. Laeroth immediately gave chase, signaling the guards in front to stop him. Two guards formed up with shields, which made him stop for a moment. After a moment Laeroth threw his knife at his back. He yelled in pain as he fell over and the guards moved in.
"Leave him!", Laeroth shouted as he grabbed the man and pulled the cloak down. It turned out to be a woman. "Who sent you!? Talk!". His words fell on deaf ears as the woman's head twitched and a thick purple foam-like substance oozed from her mouth. Laeroth groaned and let her go, "Burn the body. Speak nothing of this.". The guards nodded and carried the body outside.
'Gilshor.', Laeroth thought, 'I will not let you turn this war into your own personal puppet show. The darkness will not rule the light.'
---
(Meanwhile)
Upper level of the Imperial palace
Lilyth Camilla Agorix was always a strange girl. While the other girls took care of their hair, she took care of the armor forged specifically for her. While the other girls practiced knitting and read poetry, she expressed an interest in politics and philosophy. This behavior wasn't particularly accepted by her father. Her mother, on the other hand, empress Alruna Flavia Agorix, greatly supported her. It was thanks to her effort that women were allowed to join the army, and at the moment, a tenth of the army is female. Alruna wasn't named the Lioness for anything, and Lilyth tries to live up to her expectations.
But some members of the family aren't as hard-working as her. Her brother Armas is the biggest and most disgusting slob. She could hear him and his hooligans laugh in his chamber. Trying her best to ignore them, she walked past, but as Armas exited the room he called her over, "Hey sister! Come on in. We have room."
Lilyth groaned, "I have more important matters to attend to than entertain a room full of children."
Armas laughed, "Oh come on, loosen up. The slaves taught me that."
"Armas, if mother finds out-"
"What? What will she do? These slaves were given to me and I can do whatever I want with them."
"Is that so?", spoke a mature womanly voice, "Tell me, Armas, what exactly have you been doing?"
"M-Mother?", Armas uttered. Next to her was the second youngest daughter, Khelsa, along with the captive human girl, Amy. The two became friends after Amy arrived and while Alruna didn't support it at first, she learned that a child is a child, and her being from a supposedly savage land is irrelevant. "Nothing. Just questioning these captives with my soldiers."
"You mean raping women with your hooligans.", Alruna said as she walked into his room. The stench and sight made her sick. "Guards! Take these women to my chambers and bring along some maids. Clean them, feed them, and dress them properly." Guards did just that, pushing away the thugs who grunted in response.
"Khelsa?", Amy asked, "Is that your brother?"
Khelsa sighed in response, "Yes. I'm sorry you had to see this."
As the guards took the women out, Armas protested, "Mother, this is unfair. These women are my slaves. Furthermore, they are savages from a barbaric land. They should consider themselves lucky to even be in my presence. Father says-"
Alruna slapped him, stopping his sentence, "Your father may be the emperor, but I know him better than anyone else. He is narrow-minded and frightened, only seeing what is right in front of him, and never bothering to properly assess anything. We may be the chosen bringers of light, but if we act as barbaric as our adversaries then we are no better than them. Now, get this room cleaned and then yourself. You are royalty, act like it." With that Alruna and Lilyth left, leaving Armas to bicker and throw tantrums.
"Thank you, mother.", Lilyth said, "I must go now."
"Go, my daughter.", said Alruna. Lilyth bowed and entered her chamber.
"Fenris.", she spoke, "Is everything ready?"
"Yes, princess.", Fenris said, "The savage stands before you in chains and the scribe has prepared the parchment."
"Excellent. Scribe, you are to document any and all findings. Listen carefully. Do you understand?"
"Yes, princess.", answered the scribe.
"Let us begin.", Lilyth said as she walked to the captive, "What is your name?"
"You know that.", he answered and received a back-handed slap. After moving his head back, he answered, "Brian O'Neil."
"Where are you from?"
"My mom.", to which he received a punch in the stomach. It didn't hurt a lot, considering he was a large man. "The United States of America."
"Tell me more about it."
"It's a unity of fifty-two states with three hundred and fifty million people."
This shocked Lilyth but she didn't show it, "Are there more countries?"
"Many more. My country isn't even the biggest one."
"So there are more empires in your world."
"No, there aren't any."
Lilyth paused for a moment, "Then what?"
"We are a republic. We elect our leader and that leader represents us. He doesn't have all the power and all of his decisions are put to a vote. Empires and kings are a thing of the past."
"You expect me to believe that? A nation cannot function without a centralized figure controlling it."
Brad chuckled, "We use to think that, too. But we found out that the opposite is true. One person can control a city, or maybe a small nation. But the bigger a nation gets and the more powerful it gets, the more strain appears on a single person. This is why our nations are governed by dozens of people and we have careful systems for governance. A single person is not enough. He would only bring ruin."
This shocked Lilyth more. A system like this was always theorized by politicians and philosophers, but nothing was ever tested because the emperors abolished it, saying that it goes against the path of light. "You say that. But our empire has grown powerful and spread across the world. We have become its rulers and spreaders of wisdom, knowledge, and civilization."
"There used to be an empire in my world that thought just like you. They wanted to conquer the entire world and make it so that only their ways exist. Do you want to know what happened?"
"What?"
"They became too big. There was too much ground. Their forces were spread thin and could be picked off by united barbarians who didn't like their ways. War stopped and since their economy depended on it, it crumbled. Their politicians became corrupt and power-hungry. They stole from and even killed each other. Eventually, they fell beneath the force of the united kingdoms they called savages and were wiped out. This is why no one can truly conquer the world. No matter how hard you fight, the world always wins."
Lilyth clenched her fists and stared at Brad with an angered look, "You say that we will end up the same?"
"If you refuse to change, then yes.".
After staring at him for a few moments, she spoke, "Fenris! Take him back to his cell. We will continue this tomorrow."
"At once, princess.", Fenris said and grabbed Brad by the arm.
As they were walking out the door, Brad turned his head to Fenris, "You know she likes you, right?".
Fenris looked at him for a bit before pushing him forward. Lilyth was left to ponder Brad's words. There is still much for her to learn.
---
(That night)
Somewhere between Meilume capital and Una
Being a prisoner is never good. Your rights are taken away and the ones who captured you can do anything they want to you. They could kill you, sell you or worse. This was the predicament the Belus family found itself in. Out of the two hundred soldiers that accompanied them, only one soldier remained, the others were killed and fed to the welfen and leanoids. The Belus family was in a cage with the last soldier, Klaus, and a servant, Lia. The five of them were all sitting with their hands tied behind their backs, wondering what will happen next. Taria was still grieving over the death of Aego, not even lifting her head.
"Bellon.", Nimriel whispered, "What will happen to us?"
"Do not worry.", Bellon said, "We will alright."
"Stop lying, father.", Taria said, still with head lowered, "These people will first rape us, torture us and then demand ransom from the empire."
"Hush, my lady.", Lia said, "Don't say such things."
"What? The truth?"
"You should listen to the little girl.", said a rogue elf as he crouched in front of the cage. Behind him was the fire in the center of the camp with four more rogues, two leanoids, and one welfen. Most of the bandits were asleep, only over a dozen stayed awake. "The money we'll get from you will make us set for life. Sure, we might have lost more than half our men, but that just means more for the living."
Taria spat, "Open this cage and I'll show you a little girl."
The rogue chuckled, "Quite a fighter. I saw you kill that leanoid. You're good. Why don't you come with us?"
"Why would I join a bunch of good-for-nothing traitors? You know nothing of honor, duty or the light."
The rogue laughed, "They still teach that shit? The light is nothing but a made-up excuse the first emperor made so we can take these lands. People like us? We see the truth. And all of you are being manipulated."
"You dare mock the path of light?", asked Bellon.
"Shouldn't a bad joke be mocked?"
Taria and Bellon gritted their teeth. This is why rogues are killed on sight. They know nothing but greed. As Taria stared at the rogue, something appeared in the corner of her vision. A man in green armor held a black boomstick and aimed it at the bandits by the fire. She looked around and saw six more. Are they insane? If they fire it, it will alert everyone. But when they fired them, only a slight sound was heard. Enough for the rogue in front of her to turn around. He saw his mates dead, but couldn't call for help as his neck was ripped out by a welfen. The Belus family was in shock as the welfen opened the cage.
"Don't be afraid.", he spoke, "I'm with the Americans."
This confused the family. "Who?", Taria asked.
Soon after, a soldier in green got to them, "My name is Lieutenant Caden Roberts of RG-3. We're here to rescue you.". He cut their ropes and waved his hand to signal the rest of his men. As they moved, Taria saw the dead bodies of the bandits and when they got out of the camp she could see that only fifteen soldiers, including two tribals, came to rescue them.
"Who are you people?", Taria asked.
"We're the Rift Expeditionary Force from the United States of America.", said the lieutenant as he pressed a small metallic box which caused the entire bandit camp to get engulfed in flames. The bandits burned and screamed, some ran out of the camp but got shot by the green soldiers. Their camouflaged armor, repeating broomsticks, and fire magic puzzled Taria greatly. She couldn't even see their faces from their masks and eyewear. Who are they? Her questions had to wait a little longer, as iron carriages moved from behind them and opened.
"Lieutenant, is it go time?", spoke the man from one of the carriages.
"Yeah.", said the lieutenant, "Let's go, I'll get them to the MRAP. Come on.". He led the five of them to the middle carriages through its back door. It looked like it was completely made of metal and that it could take a cannon shot. This just further confused them. As the carriages started moving, they noticed that it was going at high speeds, even faster than horses.
"Who are you?", Bellon asked, "What do you want from us?"
The soldiers in front of them looked at each other before taking their masks and helmets off, revealing their pale faces. It wasn't anything sinister and they didn't look like they intended to harm them.
"I am sergeant Jeff Parker.", spoke one of them.
"I am staff sergeant Liam Cook.", spoke the other one, "Over here is Lioba, our feelian, and Olaf, our friendly welfen."
"It's welfen that attacked us.", Klaus spoke.
"Do not speak as if they are of my kind.", said Olaf in an angered tone, "Those beasts lost their meaning in life."
"What do you mean?", Jeff asked.
"Each wolf lives for the pack. For the tribe. He fights for it, provides for it, and dies for it. These wolves, they've abandoned their blood and chosen the life of a wild animal. They're no better than the ferals."
"I see. We have those too. We call them deserters. They flee the army and abandon their brothers. And so we hunt them down and punish them."
"As you should."
After some silence, Klaus spoke, "Forgive me. I meant no disrespect.". Olaf nodded.
"Are you taking us home?", Nimriel asked.
"No.", Liam said, "We're taking you to Galdush. Our lieutenant-general wishes to speak with you. Well, lord Bellon more specifically." The five went silent. This was the enemy from the rift, and now they're taking them to their leader.
"Are we to become your slaves then?", Taria asked.
Jeff and Liam chuckled a bit. "No no, of course not. That kind of thing is in the past for us. Our lieutenant-general only wants to speak with you. After a nice conversation, we will personally bring you back to the Meilume capital."
"How do you know its name?", Bellon asked.
"We have our ways. Now sit back and enjoy the ride.", Liam said as he pulled some blocks out of his pocket. When he opened it, it was gray and seemed to be food. After offering it to Lia, he spoke, "Hungry?". After some hesitation, Lia took it and tasted it. It was quite delicious. As she ate the whole thing, Liam chuckled as he opened a bag, "Don't strain yourself, I have enough for everyone."
---
(Several hours later)
Fort Galdush
"My lady.", said Lia as she shook Taria, "My lady, wake up, we've arrived."
Taria woke up, "What? How long have I been asleep?"
"A few hours, my lady."
This was surprising, to say the least, "We're already here?". She looked out the window and saw their fort as well as their machines. The M2 battle tanks rolled over the hills and fired at the targets, blasting through them. She saw soldiers shooting their guns and groups running in a circle. At the gate, the lieutenant introduced himself and the convoy continued. Inside, they could see soldiers clad in thick, metal armor carrying large boxes and as they got out of the MRAP they saw the Invictus ACs flying in the air. All of this overwhelmed them. To them, these were otherworldly monsters. To the rangers, it was a normal everyday occurrence.
Lieutenant Roberts stood in front of his men, "Alright. I will take lord Bellon Belus to lieutenant-general Coleman. Parker, Cook, you take the rest to their temporary residents."
"Yes sir.", both of them said as they saluted, "Okay, let's go. I promise it's nothing bad."
Taria, Lia, Nimriel, and Klaus went with Jeff and Liam to their residence while Caden took Bellon to the lieutenant-general. The two of them went into the central command building.
"Lieutenant Caden Roberts of Rift Group 3 here to see colonel Andrew Marshal and lieutenant-general Patrick Coleman.", he said to a woman who worked as a secretary.
After some delay, the woman nodded, "Go down the hall to meeting room two."
"Thank you. Come on.". Bellon followed Caden through the hall. He admired how it was crystal clear and pearl white like they were made of pure marble. As they walked they reached the meeting room and entered. Inside were two men who stood up immediately.
"Good morning.", said the first man, "I am lieutenant-general Patrick Coleman of the Rift Expeditionary Corp. And this is our logistics officer, colonel Andrew Marshal."
"Nice to meet you.", Andrew said, "You are the lord of Meilume, Bellon Belus, correct?"
Bellon stuttered, "Y-Yes I am. Great general, you have my eternal gratitude for saving my life, and my family.", he said as he bowed.
"Please.", Patrick spoke, "No need to bow. And please call me Patrick. Sit down."
"Thank you, Patrick.", Bellon said as he sat down, Caden next to him.
"While I accept your gratitude, I'm going to need to ask something else of you?"
'Of course. What was I expecting?', Bellon thought, "And what would that be? If it is gold I assure you the emperor will pay a decent sum for my family and me."
"Oh no, god no. I'm not asking for money. I need something from you that only someone of your status within the empire can provide."
'Someone of my status'. "What exactly?"
"As you know, your empire opened a rift in our country and attacked without warning and unprovoked. We beat the invasion force and the force than came after it. You lost two armies in less than a month, or, a moon cycle as you call them."
"Yes, I am aware of this. What does that have to do with me? I didn't send those armies."
"We know. But you have a connection with the person who did. And we want you to send a message to him for us."
'A message?' "And what kind of message?"
"We would like an audience with a representative to negotiate peace."
This stunned Bellon. 'Peace?'
---
(Meanwhile)
Jeff and Liam brought the four to an empty army barracks, reserved for these situations. "Okay.", Liam spoke, "You'll be staying here until the lieutenant-general orders otherwise. Don't worry, you'll be comfortable." They entered the barracks and it was clean, with several beds, a fridge, desks, and lights, which Jeff turned on, surprising the 'guests'.
"Make yourselves at home.", Jeff said, "I'll bring you some breakfast soon.". He left and closed the door, leaving the four to talk.
"What do you think will happen, Klaus?", Nimriel asked.
"I don't know, my lady.", he answered, "But we shouldn't do anything to anger them. I think we should wait and see what is to come."
Taria looked out the window and saw the tanks and LAVs driving past as well as soldiers marching in unison. "Incredible. All this power. They could have destroyed Meilume before we even had the chance to escape. And yet here we are. In their fortress, waiting for them to bring us food. They want something."
"Well.", Lia said, "That man who offered me the sweet food was nice. I think they're not that bad."
"They are the enemy, Lia. Enemies should never be trusted. It might seem like they are good, but they are using us. They want us here so we can witness their power and use us to spread fear through the rest of the empire. Clever."
"I think you are thinking too much about it, my lady. Perhaps you need to sit down, and rest."
Taria sighed. She walked to a nearby desk and observed the notebooks, pens, and pencils. She sat down and opened a notebook, immediately noticing how the paper is milk-white with lines to help her writing. Picking up one of the pens, she observed how smooth it was and made of spotless, thin metal, but also how it didn't have a tip. Then she noticed the round top and remembered how the lieutenant pressed his metal box. Pressing down the top, the pen clicked and the tip appeared. Amazed, she clicked it several more times before starting to write.
"Taria?", Nimriel asked, "What are you doing?"
"I'm writing down what I saw."
At that moment, Jeff opened the door and brought several white cardboard boxes, "I brought breakfast. I hope it's to your liking."
Each of them took one and Jeff put the last one on Taria's desk. She looked at him and asked, "Can you show me more of your fortress?"
Jeff hesitated a bit, "Why?"
"I'm curious. I wish to learn."
"So you can write it down and give the information to the army?". Taria sat silently. This wasn't untrue. "Look, we're not your enemy. Our commanding officer is talking to your father about peace. Truth is, we don't want war.". Taria paused to think about that. "But if I get permission, I'll show you around."
"I would appreciate it. Thank you."
​
End of chapter 10
​
---
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Is quai more or less secure than bitcoin in regards to how easy it will be to centralize the network to a small group of nodes? is there ways of preventing centralization built into quai?

Intro So, I've planned out a few board games, card games, miniatures wargames, and related over the years -- in part or (almost) in full -- and I seem to have similar thought processes and routines each time, all the way through to the rough play-testing phase (meaning, with a mock-up of the game). I assume this post is helpful to others, not just myself, and might be useful this time around, too, with my space zombies wargame, likely at the skirmish level.
Ideas The very first thing you should do is write down ideas (long-hand or digitally). And, if it's not the first thing, it's in conjunction with a few other early processes, but for the sake of a simple step-by-step guide, I'll run with this (and it's certainly in line with how I often work).
This initial process, because it's likely that you'll think of more ideas later or re-work something at a later stage (if nothing else, simply because an idea shifts or becomes meaningless later on), could take anywhere from 2 hours to 2 years. It depends on how quick you are at thinking and writing, and just how many ideas you have. Realistically, this process is likely to take a few hours, or a few days.
However, there is something important to mention, and this is a nice place for it. You might want to leave a few days between steps or mico-steps (such as between Ideas and Early Planning) when designing a game. The reason is that I find just having a few days to let the project sit in my head as I go about my daily life actually helps to draw connections or think of new ideas, or just to literally sit and think on it to see how I feel -- literally taking a step back and seeing the bigger picture. A few days will do the trick, though it's not a requirement.
(For what it's worth, the same sort of advice is given for writers, as well, such as with lore and worldbuilding. Just writing flat-out, non-stop often backfires, actually. I even recall some mention of studies showing that the creative brain works at its best when you're not really thinking, which is why it's common for genius ideas to strike when you're doing something repetitive and mindless, such as Darwin walking around his garden, Einstein stamping patents, J.K. Rowling sitting on a train, or Tolkien grading student papers. Notice that they got some of their best ideas when just doing some kind of simple daily task/job. I assume this is what's happening when you take a few days away from whatever you're working on, and then you come back with even more ideas in your head, even though you weren't actively thinking about it. Of course, I'm not putting us in the same camp as those writers and scientists, I'm just saying that the same logic applies to all levels of creativity, low and high. So, if you want to work at your best, you should repeat some boring tasks now and again, or just take a walk to really re-energise your brain for more game design.)
As a result, you might spend 1-2 hours on the first day, and 1-2 hours on the third day, with a break on the second day just to collect your thoughts. You might even have many ideas to get on the paper if it's a big/complex game, so you might require many sessions/days. (Naturally, not everybody has 2 hours to write/think, so you can simply adjust this system accordingly. Either way, it should take no more than 7 days of real time for this first step or mico-step of just getting the core ideas on paper.)
My 'space zombies' wargame idea is actually a good example. I've had a 'zombies' idea in my head for a few years now. And, that's another thing: if you have an idea in your head, and it won't go away, it's best to just listen to it. So, I'm finally listening to it and taking it very seriously. However, the 'space' part of the 'zombies game' came later, just yesterday. It came largely out of necessity, because generic, zombies-on-the-ground has already been done before, and I couldn't find a way to make that hyper interesting. Then, it hit me to make a galactic-level zombie infection and use sci-fi models (aka space monsters and space military) instead of generic 17th-century type models (aka farmers, etc.), or else, generic 21st-century guys. That naturally popped the gag of 'space zombies' into my head, which actually sounded cool, though a bit on the nose. I mean, there is already the joke about 'space Communists' (Tau from Warhammer 40k), 'space elves' (Eldar from Warhammer 40k), and 'space orcs' (Orks from Warahmmer 40k... yes, I'm also beginning to see a pattern here). Warahmmer 40k even has 'Egyptian Terminators in space' (Necrons).
I also have a strange fading half-memory of vampires in space, but not sure if that's just a dream I had or from a TV show or something (although, Blood Angels from Warahmmer 40k are kind of like military-grade vampires in space). I guess, the rule is... if Tolkien invented it, then it can be thrown into space and be made ten times cooler. Well, Tolkien didn't invent zombies, but the same logic applies to all folklore/mythos, etc. (And, I guess Groot is like the Ents in space. I love Groot even more now.) It actually makes perfect psycholoigcal sense, and is not unheard of to have various monsters and real Earth creations in space, ranging from tanks to dinosaurs. (Actually, the idea of humans being infected in space is not even close to a new idea, though they are typically just generic zombie infections, not actual zombie monsters. Anyway, the point is: you need to get hold of a cool idea, and then run with it.)
Now, I should clarify this stage: when I say, 'ideas', I mean everything from core mechanics to subtext (as in storytelling theme/symbolism) to an outline of the central lore (background/fluff/worldbuilding/character). There are at least 20 major items for the ideas list. For example, at the top of the page (that is, my Word document), I like to type out the central inspiration for the project for overall design, feel, and functionality, be it another board game, a video game, and/or a movie. This all adds to the singular vision, which is key. I find writing it down to crystallise it helps just to get it out of the way/out of your head -- and if you ever start going off-track, you can look back at your ideas list/notes and remember what you're aiming at.
I typically rush out a list of items, because I'm working through it all in my mind and just want to get as many tags/descriptions, etc. down as possible. Then, I slowly add it to it and detail it out a bit more. I'll pretty much list all key details, such as the kind of game, the core components, the core mechanics, the setting, the scale/scope, the primary player interactions (such as things like currency), the tonality (serious or comedic, etc.), the number of players, A.I. systems, gameplay purpose/winning conditions, and much more.
Note: If you're making a game to sell, then your primary considerations are likely to be design elements for marketing, such as age range, overarching game type, and duration. Those should be at the top of your ideas list, and should all nicely connect with one another (at least roughly). Everything else will be designed around exactly where the game will sit on the shelf, so to speak. (If you're selling your game and don't have such considerations in mind, then this is largely moot, though such is likely to matter at some point down the line.)
​
Early Planning Not surprisingly, the early planning stage feeds directly off from the ideas stage. Here we actually detail out all of our ideas, and start putting them into action.
This process takes days, if not weeks, depending on the project size and complexity, and how much time you put in each day, and where you want to focus, and just how much work you want done before moving onto step two (my feeling is you should do as little as possible, as it's always best to get the ball rolling, and everything interacts with everything else, anyway, so it's not useful to spend weeks on just a single element this early on, as it might go or need radically changing, anyway).
Your focus here should be two-fold: first, you should detail out all key info, including the entire lore/story and related for your world and characters and setting, and stack that with the core game mechanics and how it actually plays, and the purpose of the game. Second, you should map out just how the game plays, how the game might look, and how the player interacts with it.
Sometimes, these two stages might heavily overlap, and you might get it all done within a few hours. On the other hand, they could be very distinct stages. Either way, I believe they form step one for most board games and related games.
Either way, what matters here is getting to a point where you can actually visualise most of the game and have a clear understanding of how it works and why, so that you could easily explain it to somebody. Of course, it won't be playable in real space yet, nor even functional from a mechanical standpoint, even on paper. It's just the foundations, but everything should be falling into place now.
Having said that, this is also around the time when things can start to fall apart, which is common if you lack a singular vision for the project, or have fundamentally done something wrong in terms of the core mechanics/design, or maybe you just don't like the general direction. That's why this step is so important. Any problems in your mind need to be fixed here and now if possible, including starting over, re-working ideas, breaking each piece down and building it back up again, and changing the tonality or scope of the project, or even game type.
By the end of the first step, you'll also get a rough idea of the components you want to use and will have started to map out their functions (such as decks and dice). This is good, because you're going to need to buy and/or make such components soon in order to play-test (though there are other ways to play-test, as well), and then either play it or sell it.
I should mention that it's possible that you really love the project and how it's shaping up, but something isn't right, but you don't know what's wrong. In this case, you should just carry on, as it might fix itself by some later stage, or at least reveal itself. Otherwise, if all goes according to plan, you should have a clear vision for your game, and you should roughly know what is required and how you want it to play, and have all the required backstory for the characters and such.
Of course, you won't actually know how it plays yet -- that comes over the following steps. You also won't have novel-length backstories written out for your hero and such just yet (again, that comes next, assuming you want/need that much detail. Personally, I don't suggest too much detail). You also won't have much info on the maths/probability and such -- that comes later, when you start to actually map out the dice/related mechanics and functions, etc. However, I think messing around with dice and other core mechanics early on is a good idea to try and force some ideas out of you about just how the game will play (unless you already have a concrete dice system in your head from another game, then that's fine, but it's quite uncommon. Typically, lots of testing is required to find your game's voice, as it were). Although I've mostly spoken in terms of board games and wargames, such applies to all (or at least most) types of games.

Expedition report from Rift Group 4
Report carried out by Lieutenant Marvin Bailey
Report states: Peaceful contact with the local town of Una has ended in failure. Upon nearing the gates, the elves demanded RG-4 to identify themselves and after identification, they opened fire on with bows, crossbows, and scorpions. RG4 retaliated by opening fire with its 50mm chain gun, destroying parts of the wall, killing an unknown number of defenders, and destroying their heavy defenses. The initial shock from the chain gun froze the defenders, allowing RG-4 to vacate the area with minimum damage and no losses taken. This was the first unsuccessful interaction with the local populace since the beginning of the expedition and the Rift Group program and it shows that not all natives will be pleased with REC's arrival.
Other news: The enemy force on the other side of the North Alston river has not shown any signs of movement. Moreover, drone footage shows a number of the local populace leaving the Meilume capital and Una across the river, further suggesting that the Imperial army wishes to fortify and wall off the area between the two Alston rivers with the intention of boxing the REC before attacking. CIA sources can confirm this is the case. As far as the Rosian vassal kingdoms are concerned, RG-1, upon making successful contact with the border town of Afa, has sent a platoon, led by lieutenant James Wilson, to the Alston capital of Olinor where they made contact with the king of Alston, Thavok Zorgen. After a number of debates, king Thavok has agreed to accompany the platoon to the duchies of Zirith, Dothen, and Elarith, as well as the kingdom of Opherin to convince the dukes and kind Ostontul to attend a meeting with ambassador Eugene Anderson. Additional transportation will be provided should it be necessary.
30th day of late yellow season
Elyana, Empire of Light
"So.", said the chained human, "Is it my turn to pick the nail or yours?". The torturer responded by punching him in the face. The prisoner spat out a piece of his tooth before answering, "C'mon, you're supposed to be consistent. It's nail, nail, cut, punch. The teeth come later when all the nails are gone. Everyone knows that.". The torturer punched him again. "There you go again, messing up the consistency. I think I know why you work in this shit hole now."
The torturer wanted to hit him again, but a voice stopped him, "Enough!". A moment later, two elves walked into the room.
"Great General Laeroth.", the torturer said as he bowed.
"How is the questioning, Maul?", Laeroth asked.
"Not well, my lord. This human is proving to be a greater challenge than I had anticipated. All I got was a name. Jack Mitchell."
Laeroth sighed as he approached the chained-up human. His body was cut in several places and half of his fingernails have been removed. In addition, he was missing two teeth and bleeding from his mouth and nose. Yet he still denies Maul. As much as it pained Laeroth to admit it, he was impressed. Any Rosian or even elf would have broken by now. What made this human different?
"Jack Mitchell.", Laeroth said, making Jack lift his head and smile.
"What's up?", Jack asked.
"The ceiling.", Laeroth answered, making Jack laugh. "What is humorous?"
"Maul over there said the same thing.", Jack replied as he wheezed, "You sure you're not related? You got the same shade."
This made Maul mad as he grabbed his hammer, "You insolent savage!"
"Calm yourself.", Laeroth said, "I still need this human alive. High mage Gunru, you have my permission.".
"Yes, general.", said Gunru. He was one of the seven high mages of the empire in North Altia, second only to the grand mage Ishton. Each high mage is able to use more than one type of magical ability. Usually, a mage is only able to use one ability from a single spirit. The mages of Vita can be healers or they can use their power to give life to made objects. This way they can create their own army, however, the mage has to remain alive in order for the creature to remain alive, and if the creature is destroyed the life will return back to its source. The mages of Elendi can use one of the various elements, such as wind, fire, water, and so on. One other ability the high mages possess is 'Mind read'. By focusing their spiritual energy on the mind of the target, they can visualize their knowledge.
"What the hell are you doing?", Jack asked as Gunru grabbed his head with both hands, "I mean I'm flattered but I'm into women, just so you know."
Gunru closed his eyes and white energy started appearing from his hands. That energy went into Jack's head, which remained perfectly still as this occurred. Gunru entered his mind and began to project Jack's memories, thoughts, and knowledge around him. Laeroth just watched. He himself couldn't see unless Gunru gave the knowledge to him. But he did see something that disturbed him. Gunru began to twitch. A twitching that turned to shake as his eyes opened and quickly pulled back while panting and holding his head as though he had a headache.
"Gunru.", Laeroth called, "Tell me, what have you seen?"
Gunru shook and could barely grasp the words to speak, "T-T-Terrible things. A mistake. All of this was a mistake."
"Show me."
"No!", Gunru yelled immediately, "You must not. I could not get all the details myself. You will go insane."
"I must know our enemy. Even if it is a little, I must know. Gunru, you must show me."
Gunru greatly hesitated and opposed this. But at the same time, he knew if anyone was able to take the strain, it was Laeroth, the most loyal servant of the empire. "Very well. I shall show you as much as I can. Forgive me."
As Gunru placed his hands on Laeroth's head, the same energy went into it. Laeroth opened his eyes and found himself on a field of battle. Two sides were fighting, humans. One side had blue clothing and the other was red, both fighting with cannons and boomsticks, but nothing else. The blue-clothed soldiers appeared to be winning and they charged the red ones, all while carrying a flag. Red and white stripes with stars. It was brutal. What could it mean?
Night turned to day over and over again, until another battle occurred. Same thing, broomsticks, and cannons, but they fought each other. Once again, there was a flag with stars and stripes but now there were two. A civil war? Hundreds of thousands of men died all for what?
Fast forward, Laeroth appeared in another field, but considerably more terrifying. It was a field of black mud, ash, and blood as far as the eye could see. Thousands upon thousands of bodies piled up around giant cannons that fired and destroyed castles. He could see waves of soldiers running forward at their dug-in enemies. They fell by the dozen until a few lucky ones reached the line and engaged in a brutal brawl. The fighting kept escalating until a massive white cloud filled the battlefield and everyone caught in started choking and dying.
Once the smoke cleared, Laeroth could see hundreds of thousands, no, millions of soldiers and armored beasts marching across a field. They fought another gigantic army, one Laeroth thought could never exist. Millions of troops met on the battlefield and slaughtered one another as the metal monsters spat fire and thousands of iron wyverns fought in the air. Massive ships of steel fired enormous cannons of steel at one another as hundreds of iron rods fell from the sky and flattened the cities below.
Closing and opening his eyes one more time he saw a city. A large city with towers of stone and glass that pierced the clouds. But then he saw it get destroyed as it was engulfed in a literal sea of flames. All of those people were dead in an instant, and in place of the city was a gigantic cloud in the shape of a mushroom.
The day turned to night again as Laeroth was lifted into the air and observed the world change. The nations fought one another while also existing in peace. Cities became massive and their armies even more powerful. But then, the fires came. The great cities turned to a smoldering pile of ash as they turned on one another in the name of 'salvation'. War, disease, poverty, entire civilizations were whipped out and empires started to fall. But in this chaos, something was born. The petty rivalry of the great powers vanished and united they led their armies and pulled the corruption by its roots. It took them decades but they did it. And now united, they rebuilt their homes. The world was not at peace but they made the most of it. At least until they showed up. The rift opened, the invasion failed and now an angered giant prepares to take its vengeance and punish them for their crimes.
Gunru stopped sending energy into Laeroth's mind and let go of his head. Laeroth bent over and panted. His heart was racing and his nose bleeding. He could not believe what he saw. Was there really no hope? Was this war lost before it even began? How was he to win? He wasn't, but he knew he couldn't just give up. His pride as a warrior and a soldier wouldn't let him. But more than that, it was Canus. His maniacal nature coupled with fear will only make things worse if he were to find out. Furthermore, the Inquisition will most likely pull strings and keep the war going for their sick and twisted games. Laeroth knew he had to come up with something, otherwise, the empire will crumble.
"General, are you alright.", Maul asked.
"I am fine Maul.", Laeroth answered, "Take the human back to the cell and treat his wounds. I will let you know what I want with him next later."
"Yes, my lord.", Maul said as he gestured to the guards to help him.
"Gunru."
"Yes, general?", Gunru answered.
"You must not speak of this to anyone. Not even the emperor. This stays between us. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, general."
"Good. Now excuse me, I must clean myself and prepare for the future.". Laeroth left the torture chamber and climbed up the steps to the halls. On his way to his personal chamber, he could feel a strange sensation run down his spine. The effects of the mind read? No, this was something else. He made a random turn and walked down a narrow hallway. After taking a few steps, he prepared a knife and waited. Soon, a cloaked individual suddenly appeared from behind the corner and started running away. Laeroth immediately gave chase, signaling the guards in front to stop him. Two guards formed up with shields, which made him stop for a moment. After a moment Laeroth threw his knife at his back. He yelled in pain as he fell over and the guards moved in.
"Leave him!", Laeroth shouted as he grabbed the man and pulled the cloak down. It turned out to be a woman. "Who sent you!? Talk!". His words fell on deaf ears as the woman's head twitched and a thick purple foam-like substance oozed from her mouth. Laeroth groaned and let her go, "Burn the body. Speak nothing of this.". The guards nodded and carried the body outside.
'Gilshor.', Laeroth thought, 'I will not let you turn this war into your own personal puppet show. The darkness will not rule the light.'
---
(Meanwhile)
Upper level of the Imperial palace
Lilyth Camilla Agorix was always a strange girl. While the other girls took care of their hair, she took care of the armor forged specifically for her. While the other girls practiced knitting and read poetry, she expressed an interest in politics and philosophy. This behavior wasn't particularly accepted by her father. Her mother, on the other hand, empress Alruna Flavia Agorix, greatly supported her. It was thanks to her effort that women were allowed to join the army, and at the moment, a tenth of the army is female. Alruna wasn't named the Lioness for anything, and Lilyth tries to live up to her expectations.
But some members of the family aren't as hard-working as her. Her brother Armas is the biggest and most disgusting slob. She could hear him and his hooligans laugh in his chamber. Trying her best to ignore them, she walked past, but as Armas exited the room he called her over, "Hey sister! Come on in. We have room."
Lilyth groaned, "I have more important matters to attend to than entertain a room full of children."
Armas laughed, "Oh come on, loosen up. The slaves taught me that."
"Armas, if mother finds out-"
"What? What will she do? These slaves were given to me and I can do whatever I want with them."
"Is that so?", spoke a mature womanly voice, "Tell me, Armas, what exactly have you been doing?"
"M-Mother?", Armas uttered. Next to her was the second youngest daughter, Khelsa, along with the captive human girl, Amy. The two became friends after Amy arrived and while Alruna didn't support it at first, she learned that a child is a child, and her being from a supposedly savage land is irrelevant. "Nothing. Just questioning these captives with my soldiers."
"You mean raping women with your hooligans.", Alruna said as she walked into his room. The stench and sight made her sick. "Guards! Take these women to my chambers and bring along some maids. Clean them, feed them, and dress them properly." Guards did just that, pushing away the thugs who grunted in response.
"Khelsa?", Amy asked, "Is that your brother?"
Khelsa sighed in response, "Yes. I'm sorry you had to see this."
As the guards took the women out, Armas protested, "Mother, this is unfair. These women are my slaves. Furthermore, they are savages from a barbaric land. They should consider themselves lucky to even be in my presence. Father says-"
Alruna slapped him, stopping his sentence, "Your father may be the emperor, but I know him better than anyone else. He is narrow-minded and frightened, only seeing what is right in front of him, and never bothering to properly assess anything. We may be the chosen bringers of light, but if we act as barbaric as our adversaries then we are no better than them. Now, get this room cleaned and then yourself. You are royalty, act like it." With that Alruna and Lilyth left, leaving Armas to bicker and throw tantrums.
"Thank you, mother.", Lilyth said, "I must go now."
"Go, my daughter.", said Alruna. Lilyth bowed and entered her chamber.
"Fenris.", she spoke, "Is everything ready?"
"Yes, princess.", Fenris said, "The savage stands before you in chains and the scribe has prepared the parchment."
"Excellent. Scribe, you are to document any and all findings. Listen carefully. Do you understand?"
"Yes, princess.", answered the scribe.
"Let us begin.", Lilyth said as she walked to the captive, "What is your name?"
"You know that.", he answered and received a back-handed slap. After moving his head back, he answered, "Brian O'Neil."
"Where are you from?"
"My mom.", to which he received a punch in the stomach. It didn't hurt a lot, considering he was a large man. "The United States of America."
"Tell me more about it."
"It's a unity of fifty-two states with three hundred and fifty million people."
This shocked Lilyth but she didn't show it, "Are there more countries?"
"Many more. My country isn't even the biggest one."
"So there are more empires in your world."
"No, there aren't any."
Lilyth paused for a moment, "Then what?"
"We are a republic. We elect our leader and that leader represents us. He doesn't have all the power and all of his decisions are put to a vote. Empires and kings are a thing of the past."
"You expect me to believe that? A nation cannot function without a centralized figure controlling it."
Brad chuckled, "We use to think that, too. But we found out that the opposite is true. One person can control a city, or maybe a small nation. But the bigger a nation gets and the more powerful it gets, the more strain appears on a single person. This is why our nations are governed by dozens of people and we have careful systems for governance. A single person is not enough. He would only bring ruin."
This shocked Lilyth more. A system like this was always theorized by politicians and philosophers, but nothing was ever tested because the emperors abolished it, saying that it goes against the path of light. "You say that. But our empire has grown powerful and spread across the world. We have become its rulers and spreaders of wisdom, knowledge, and civilization."
"There used to be an empire in my world that thought just like you. They wanted to conquer the entire world and make it so that only their ways exist. Do you want to know what happened?"
"What?"
"They became too big. There was too much ground. Their forces were spread thin and could be picked off by united barbarians who didn't like their ways. War stopped and since their economy depended on it, it crumbled. Their politicians became corrupt and power-hungry. They stole from and even killed each other. Eventually, they fell beneath the force of the united kingdoms they called savages and were wiped out. This is why no one can truly conquer the world. No matter how hard you fight, the world always wins."
Lilyth clenched her fists and stared at Brad with an angered look, "You say that we will end up the same?"
"If you refuse to change, then yes.".
After staring at him for a few moments, she spoke, "Fenris! Take him back to his cell. We will continue this tomorrow."
"At once, princess.", Fenris said and grabbed Brad by the arm.
As they were walking out the door, Brad turned his head to Fenris, "You know she likes you, right?".
Fenris looked at him for a bit before pushing him forward. Lilyth was left to ponder Brad's words. There is still much for her to learn.
---
(That night)
Somewhere between Meilume capital and Una
Being a prisoner is never good. Your rights are taken away and the ones who captured you can do anything they want to you. They could kill you, sell you or worse. This was the predicament the Belus family found itself in. Out of the two hundred soldiers that accompanied them, only one soldier remained, the others were killed and fed to the welfen and leanoids. The Belus family was in a cage with the last soldier, Klaus, and a servant, Lia. The five of them were all sitting with their hands tied behind their backs, wondering what will happen next. Taria was still grieving over the death of Aego, not even lifting her head.
"Bellon.", Nimriel whispered, "What will happen to us?"
"Do not worry.", Bellon said, "We will alright."
"Stop lying, father.", Taria said, still with head lowered, "These people will first rape us, torture us and then demand ransom from the empire."
"Hush, my lady.", Lia said, "Don't say such things."
"What? The truth?"
"You should listen to the little girl.", said a rogue elf as he crouched in front of the cage. Behind him was the fire in the center of the camp with four more rogues, two leanoids, and one welfen. Most of the bandits were asleep, only over a dozen stayed awake. "The money we'll get from you will make us set for life. Sure, we might have lost more than half our men, but that just means more for the living."
Taria spat, "Open this cage and I'll show you a little girl."
The rogue chuckled, "Quite a fighter. I saw you kill that leanoid. You're good. Why don't you come with us?"
"Why would I join a bunch of good-for-nothing traitors? You know nothing of honor, duty or the light."
The rogue laughed, "They still teach that shit? The light is nothing but a made-up excuse the first emperor made so we can take these lands. People like us? We see the truth. And all of you are being manipulated."
"You dare mock the path of light?", asked Bellon.
"Shouldn't a bad joke be mocked?"
Taria and Bellon gritted their teeth. This is why rogues are killed on sight. They know nothing but greed. As Taria stared at the rogue, something appeared in the corner of her vision. A man in green armor held a black boomstick and aimed it at the bandits by the fire. She looked around and saw six more. Are they insane? If they fire it, it will alert everyone. But when they fired them, only a slight sound was heard. Enough for the rogue in front of her to turn around. He saw his mates dead, but couldn't call for help as his neck was ripped out by a welfen. The Belus family was in shock as the welfen opened the cage.
"Don't be afraid.", he spoke, "I'm with the Americans."
This confused the family. "Who?", Taria asked.
Soon after, a soldier in green got to them, "My name is Lieutenant Caden Roberts of RG-3. We're here to rescue you.". He cut their ropes and waved his hand to signal the rest of his men. As they moved, Taria saw the dead bodies of the bandits and when they got out of the camp she could see that only fifteen soldiers, including two tribals, came to rescue them.
"Who are you people?", Taria asked.
"We're the Rift Expeditionary Force from the United States of America.", said the lieutenant as he pressed a small metallic box which caused the entire bandit camp to get engulfed in flames. The bandits burned and screamed, some ran out of the camp but got shot by the green soldiers. Their camouflaged armor, repeating broomsticks, and fire magic puzzled Taria greatly. She couldn't even see their faces from their masks and eyewear. Who are they? Her questions had to wait a little longer, as iron carriages moved from behind them and opened.
"Lieutenant, is it go time?", spoke the man from one of the carriages.
"Yeah.", said the lieutenant, "Let's go, I'll get them to the MRAP. Come on.". He led the five of them to the middle carriages through its back door. It looked like it was completely made of metal and that it could take a cannon shot. This just further confused them. As the carriages started moving, they noticed that it was going at high speeds, even faster than horses.
"Who are you?", Bellon asked, "What do you want from us?"
The soldiers in front of them looked at each other before taking their masks and helmets off, revealing their pale faces. It wasn't anything sinister and they didn't look like they intended to harm them.
"I am sergeant Jeff Parker.", spoke one of them.
"I am staff sergeant Liam Cook.", spoke the other one, "Over here is Lioba, our feelian, and Olaf, our friendly welfen."
"It's welfen that attacked us.", Klaus spoke.
"Do not speak as if they are of my kind.", said Olaf in an angered tone, "Those beasts lost their meaning in life."
"What do you mean?", Jeff asked.
"Each wolf lives for the pack. For the tribe. He fights for it, provides for it, and dies for it. These wolves, they've abandoned their blood and chosen the life of a wild animal. They're no better than the ferals."
"I see. We have those too. We call them deserters. They flee the army and abandon their brothers. And so we hunt them down and punish them."
"As you should."
After some silence, Klaus spoke, "Forgive me. I meant no disrespect.". Olaf nodded.
"Are you taking us home?", Nimriel asked.
"No.", Liam said, "We're taking you to Galdush. Our lieutenant-general wishes to speak with you. Well, lord Bellon more specifically." The five went silent. This was the enemy from the rift, and now they're taking them to their leader.
"Are we to become your slaves then?", Taria asked.
Jeff and Liam chuckled a bit. "No no, of course not. That kind of thing is in the past for us. Our lieutenant-general only wants to speak with you. After a nice conversation, we will personally bring you back to the Meilume capital."
"How do you know its name?", Bellon asked.
"We have our ways. Now sit back and enjoy the ride.", Liam said as he pulled some blocks out of his pocket. When he opened it, it was gray and seemed to be food. After offering it to Lia, he spoke, "Hungry?". After some hesitation, Lia took it and tasted it. It was quite delicious. As she ate the whole thing, Liam chuckled as he opened a bag, "Don't strain yourself, I have enough for everyone."
---
(Several hours later)
Fort Galdush
"My lady.", said Lia as she shook Taria, "My lady, wake up, we've arrived."
Taria woke up, "What? How long have I been asleep?"
"A few hours, my lady."
This was surprising, to say the least, "We're already here?". She looked out the window and saw their fort as well as their machines. The M2 battle tanks rolled over the hills and fired at the targets, blasting through them. She saw soldiers shooting their guns and groups running in a circle. At the gate, the lieutenant introduced himself and the convoy continued. Inside, they could see soldiers clad in thick, metal armor carrying large boxes and as they got out of the MRAP they saw the Invictus ACs flying in the air. All of this overwhelmed them. To them, these were otherworldly monsters. To the rangers, it was a normal everyday occurrence.
Lieutenant Roberts stood in front of his men, "Alright. I will take lord Bellon Belus to lieutenant-general Coleman. Parker, Cook, you take the rest to their temporary residents."
"Yes sir.", both of them said as they saluted, "Okay, let's go. I promise it's nothing bad."
Taria, Lia, Nimriel, and Klaus went with Jeff and Liam to their residence while Caden took Bellon to the lieutenant-general. The two of them went into the central command building.
"Lieutenant Caden Roberts of Rift Group 3 here to see colonel Andrew Marshal and lieutenant-general Patrick Coleman.", he said to a woman who worked as a secretary.
After some delay, the woman nodded, "Go down the hall to meeting room two."
"Thank you. Come on.". Bellon followed Caden through the hall. He admired how it was crystal clear and pearl white like they were made of pure marble. As they walked they reached the meeting room and entered. Inside were two men who stood up immediately.
"Good morning.", said the first man, "I am lieutenant-general Patrick Coleman of the Rift Expeditionary Corp. And this is our logistics officer, colonel Andrew Marshal."
"Nice to meet you.", Andrew said, "You are the lord of Meilume, Bellon Belus, correct?"
Bellon stuttered, "Y-Yes I am. Great general, you have my eternal gratitude for saving my life, and my family.", he said as he bowed.
"Please.", Patrick spoke, "No need to bow. And please call me Patrick. Sit down."
"Thank you, Patrick.", Bellon said as he sat down, Caden next to him.
"While I accept your gratitude, I'm going to need to ask something else of you?"
'Of course. What was I expecting?', Bellon thought, "And what would that be? If it is gold I assure you the emperor will pay a decent sum for my family and me."
"Oh no, god no. I'm not asking for money. I need something from you that only someone of your status within the empire can provide."
'Someone of my status'. "What exactly?"
"As you know, your empire opened a rift in our country and attacked without warning and unprovoked. We beat the invasion force and the force than came after it. You lost two armies in less than a month, or, a moon cycle as you call them."
"Yes, I am aware of this. What does that have to do with me? I didn't send those armies."
"We know. But you have a connection with the person who did. And we want you to send a message to him for us."
'A message?' "And what kind of message?"
"We would like an audience with a representative to negotiate peace."
This stunned Bellon. 'Peace?'
---
(Meanwhile)
Jeff and Liam brought the four to an empty army barracks, reserved for these situations. "Okay.", Liam spoke, "You'll be staying here until the lieutenant-general orders otherwise. Don't worry, you'll be comfortable." They entered the barracks and it was clean, with several beds, a fridge, desks, and lights, which Jeff turned on, surprising the 'guests'.
"Make yourselves at home.", Jeff said, "I'll bring you some breakfast soon.". He left and closed the door, leaving the four to talk.
"What do you think will happen, Klaus?", Nimriel asked.
"I don't know, my lady.", he answered, "But we shouldn't do anything to anger them. I think we should wait and see what is to come."
Taria looked out the window and saw the tanks and LAVs driving past as well as soldiers marching in unison. "Incredible. All this power. They could have destroyed Meilume before we even had the chance to escape. And yet here we are. In their fortress, waiting for them to bring us food. They want something."
"Well.", Lia said, "That man who offered me the sweet food was nice. I think they're not that bad."
"They are the enemy, Lia. Enemies should never be trusted. It might seem like they are good, but they are using us. They want us here so we can witness their power and use us to spread fear through the rest of the empire. Clever."
"I think you are thinking too much about it, my lady. Perhaps you need to sit down, and rest."
Taria sighed. She walked to a nearby desk and observed the notebooks, pens, and pencils. She sat down and opened a notebook, immediately noticing how the paper is milk-white with lines to help her writing. Picking up one of the pens, she observed how smooth it was and made of spotless, thin metal, but also how it didn't have a tip. Then she noticed the round top and remembered how the lieutenant pressed his metal box. Pressing down the top, the pen clicked and the tip appeared. Amazed, she clicked it several more times before starting to write.
"Taria?", Nimriel asked, "What are you doing?"
"I'm writing down what I saw."
At that moment, Jeff opened the door and brought several white cardboard boxes, "I brought breakfast. I hope it's to your liking."
Each of them took one and Jeff put the last one on Taria's desk. She looked at him and asked, "Can you show me more of your fortress?"
Jeff hesitated a bit, "Why?"
"I'm curious. I wish to learn."
"So you can write it down and give the information to the army?". Taria sat silently. This wasn't untrue. "Look, we're not your enemy. Our commanding officer is talking to your father about peace. Truth is, we don't want war.". Taria paused to think about that. "But if I get permission, I'll show you around."
"I would appreciate it. Thank you."
End of chapter 10
​
---
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Thank you very much for reading
If you'd like to support me and my work feel free to upvote, follow, and check out my Patreon where you can get access to early chapters, a private Discord server, a chance to commission, and even influence on ongoing stories: patreon.com/SimpleWrites

Hi, I am looking for a cycle for both causal use and long distance rides.i'm a short person(153cm). lnterested in hybrid but is also ok with MTB.i've 4 already in mind. 1)SCHWINN sporteraa sport (used) 2)Cardiac gunner pro 3)Cardiac XC900 4)Rockrider st 100. My biggest problem is my hight.most these bike don't really fit my hight.Can any of you recommend me a good cycle for 20k for shorter riders.and what is your openion on the cycles I mentioned above.

I must confess that I don't know much about Edinburgh beyond it having some lovely buildings but some terrible crime statistics - but I hear that the latter is caused by both a Central Government as well as a Devolved Government who do not care about them?
We have focused a large section of our manifesto in this election towards crime fighting and ensuring that crime is dealt with properly, and we did that because we care about the people of lawless towns and cities such as Edinburgh and we want to help them.
At this election, there is only one party who will actually help you instead of letting you carry on with the same bad habits. If you elect the Conservative party into Government, with a Conservative MP to represent you, you can be sure that life will start to get a bit better. We do have a plan after all, I mean have you read our manifesto? Have you seen the graphics? It's awesome, they really did a great job with that one - let's reward them with some MPs please. Great job, keep it up.

SO ABHI 12TH MEI AACHUKE HU (NEET WALI ) AND MERE bahut sare backlogs hai
PHYSICS (0/ KNOWLEGE - THERMODYNAMICS KINETIC THEORY OSSILATIONS WAVES
AROUND 20- 40 KNOWLEDGE( THEORY DID WHILE BACK-BUT QUESTIONS PRACTICE PRETTY MUCH LESS (FROM 0 TO 25-30 AROUND ) FLIUDS THERMAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER SOLIDS (QUESTION PRACTICE LEKIN DONE TILL SOME Point )
MECHANICS (Ke hai till some point but saare ch ke level 2 nhi kare 😞Aakash module ke way better known than book 2 lekin confidence 0 and feel that ki extra practice karne padegi )
Chem - 1) mole concept and 2) atomic structure -just like mechanics 3)Redox and 4)thermodynamics and - 20-50 percent knowledge (theory known but very very less questions practice ) 5)hydrocarbons-reactions practiced a lot but questions practice less and very underconfident 6) equilibrium-0 knowledge
SO GUYS KYA KARU FOR THESE CHAPTER - WILL ONLY SOLVING AAKASH MODULE COMPLETELY BE ENOUGH ( FOR CHEM I THINK YES BUT PHY KA DAAR LAG RAHA HAI KYUKI AIATS MERE PHY ME MAX 50-60 MARKS SCORE KIYA HAI WHEN I DID LEVEL 2 FOR 1 CH JAB PHY KEI 2 CH AATE THEI HAR AIATS MEI AND SECOND CH WAS BARELY MINIMAL BARELY COMPLETED THEORY AND MAYBE LITTLE BIT LEVEL 1)
And time bhi nhi hai kyuki Aakash Mei June ke baad se speed up hojayga syllabus and aiats will start again so I won't get time for 11th and 12th pei Pura focus ho jayga (and my Aakash maam also said ki June ke baad it will get to late )
SO MEI KYA KARU KYA PRIORITIZE KARU FOR 3 THESE 3 MONTHS ( AFTER THAT 11TH REVISION KE LIYE 3 MONTHS BHI ALLOTED HAI BUT I USME KESE YEH BACKLOG KHATAM KARUGI SO NOWS THE TIME IVE GOT)
IM READY To give my 100 and jitna ghante lage (rn sirf 1.5hrs ki one time sitting hai ) I'm really in a lot of guilt kyuki 11th barbaad ke hai and holidays and now I don't have much time but I'm ready to put full efforts
Pls guide me - 1) will only doing Aakash module be sufficient for these ch backlogs (especially for phyy) (in 11th I only did some what module but never completed them btw )
2) can I complete all these chapters by June if I spend around 3-4 hrs in morning on backlogs on Aakash days (dummy hu ) and I'll obviously give more on weekends and holidays from Aakash and if not konse chapters karu rn till June and which I can do when 11th revision starts for 3 months (November se Jan)
PLSSS HELP KARDO IM SO AFRAID BAHUT DAAR LAG RAHA HAI IM READY TO DO BUT PLSSS GUIDE AND TELL ANY DO AND DONTS plssss plssss agar koi bhi advice de sakte hoi plsssssssssss )
I've started waking early ( at 4 or 5 max) and in 4 days I completed gravitation and mole concept (this ch till level 1 only ) but idk if my strategy is fine or anything wrong plsss helpppppp.

I’m in consulting and my upcoming project is “hybrid” for Location. I usually only see a city name so I’m not sure what this implies in terms of travel expectations. Rest of my team as well as client’s office also aren’t in my city.

​
Spawn (Start of March)
​
Shopping District (Start of march)
https://discord.com/invite/cJqBS92gF2
Welcome to The LAB SMP - a community of Minecraft players who enjoy playing together in a safe and friendly environment. We are a whitelist server with an age limit of 18+, so you can be sure that you will be playing with a mature and respectful group of individuals. Our short application process on Discord ensures that we maintain a high standard of players, so that everyone feels at home and enjoys their time with us.
Our second season has just launched, following a successful first season filled with great memories. We were inspired to create our own server after our favourite server was shut down, and we are excited to welcome new players to our community. Our server is designed to provide a vanilla Minecraft experience with just a few data packs that don't break the vanilla experience. Our map has just launched, so we are currently seeking new players to help us build and create together.
Our community is made up of players from all over the world, with ages ranging from 18 to 40+. Our server is hosted in Central US, with an average ping of 225ms for players based in South Australia, 195ms for players in the UK, and 213ms for players in China. Our server is running Paper 1.19.3, and we play on Hard difficulty with lovely villager curing.
Our server features many exciting and useful tools to enhance the Minecraft experience for our players. We have TNT Duplication enabled to encourage exploring all aspects of vanilla Minecraft, as well as Single-player sleep which allows just one player to sleep, with a cancel button in chat so that players who need the night can keep it that way. We also have a creative server exclusively for our members, BlueMap, Proximity Voice Chat, and many client-side mods such as Replay Mod and Litematica. Our web GUI provides player stats, which we use to host events.
At The LAB SMP, we aim to create a community of like-minded individuals who enjoy playing Minecraft together. We are committed to maintaining a server that is friendly, respectful, and free from lag and downtime. If you have any questions or would like to join our community, please visit our Discord and open a ticket in #get-whitelisted. We look forward to welcoming you to The LAB SMP!
https://discord.com/invite/cJqBS92gF2
tl:dr

• Whitelist server with an age limit of 18+.
• Short application process on Discord to maintain a high standard of players.
• Second season has just launched.
• Vanilla Minecraft experience with just a few data packs that don't break the vanilla experience.
• Hosted in Central US with an average ping of 225ms for players based in South Australia, 195ms for players in the UK, and 213ms for players in China.
• Running Paper 1.19.3.
• Hard difficulty
• TNT Duplication enabled to encourage exploring all aspects of vanilla Minecraft.
• Single-player sleep which allows just one player to sleep, with a cancel button in chat so that players who need the night can keep it that way.
• Creative server exclusively for members.
• BlueMap.
• Proximity Voice Chat.
• Many client-side mods such as Replay Mod and Litematica.
• Web GUI provides player stats, which we use to host events.
• https://discord.com/invite/cJqBS92gF2

https://discord.com/invite/cJqBS92gF2
Welcome to The LAB SMP - a community of Minecraft players who enjoy playing together in a safe and friendly environment. We are a whitelist server with an age limit of 18+, so you can be sure that you will be playing with a mature and respectful group of individuals. Our short application process on Discord ensures that we maintain a high standard of players, so that everyone feels at home and enjoys their time with us.
Our second season has just launched, following a successful first season filled with great memories. We were inspired to create our own server after our favourite server was shut down, and we are excited to welcome new players to our community. Our server is designed to provide a vanilla Minecraft experience with just a few data packs that don't break the vanilla experience. Our map has just launched, so we are currently seeking new players to help us build and create together.
Our community is made up of players from all over the world, with ages ranging from 18 to 40+. Our server is hosted in Central US, with an average ping of 225ms for players based in South Australia, 195ms for players in the UK, and 213ms for players in China. Our server is running Paper 1.19.3, and we play on Hard difficulty with lovely villager curing.
Our server features many exciting and useful tools to enhance the Minecraft experience for our players. We have TNT Duplication enabled to encourage exploring all aspects of vanilla Minecraft, as well as Single-player sleep which allows just one player to sleep, with a cancel button in chat so that players who need the night can keep it that way. We also have a creative server exclusively for our members, BlueMap, Proximity Voice Chat, and many client-side mods such as Replay Mod and Litematica. Our web GUI provides player stats, which we use to host events.
At The LAB SMP, we aim to create a community of like-minded individuals who enjoy playing Minecraft together. We are committed to maintaining a server that is friendly, respectful, and free from lag and downtime. If you have any questions or would like to join our community, please visit our Discord and open a ticket in #get-whitelisted. We look forward to welcoming you to The LAB SMP!
https://discord.com/invite/cJqBS92gF2
tl:dr

• Whitelist server with an age limit of 18+.
• Short application process on Discord to maintain a high standard of players.
• Vanilla Minecraft experience with just a few data packs that don't break the vanilla experience.
• Hosted in Central US with an average ping of 225ms for players based in South Australia, 195ms for players in the UK, and 213ms for players in China.
• Running Paper 1.19.3.
• Hard difficulty
• TNT Duplication enabled to encourage exploring all aspects of vanilla Minecraft.
• Single-player sleep which allows just one player to sleep, with a cancel button in chat so that players who need the night can keep it that way.
• Creative server exclusively for members.
• BlueMap.
• Proximity Voice Chat.
• Many client-side mods such as Replay Mod and Litematica.
• Web GUI provides player stats, which we use to host events.
• https://discord.com/invite/cJqBS92gF2

​
https://i.thelabsmp.com/javaw_2023-02-16_19-22-44.jpg https://i.thelabsmp.com/javaw_2023-02-16_19-23-11.jpg https://i.thelabsmp.com/javaw_2023-02-16_19-23-57.jpg

Hello,
I want to share my method for sharing my vault between my pc and apple devices.
First of all, let me share the video which made it possible for me;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSx-BkMOPF4
Required software: Syncthing
My setup / method;

1. I've removed icloud from my pc,
2. Installed macOS application bundle from link below to my MacBook Air,
   1. Syncthing in MacBook Air scans the Vault folder which is actually in iCloud folder,
   2. MacBook Air connected with QNAP over Syncthing app
3. Bonus: Installed Syncthing to my QNAP device,
   1. QNAP is a central device to share vault between PC and MacBook,
   2. QNAP is always online
4. Installed SyncTrayzor from link below to my pc,
   1. PC is connected to QNAP over Syncthing app
   2. PC downloaded QNAP files to app defined folder.
5. Whenever i update a file in PC or MacBook it's synced to QNAP.
6. I have to open MacBook after updating PC side to pull updates for my iOS ecosystem

I am still evaluating this method.
I hope this is useful for users like me :)
Links:
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSx-BkMOPF4 (Thanks Tech Craft for his video)
Syncthing: https://syncthing.net/downloads/
QNAP Package: https://qnapclub.eu/en/qpkg/692

Start Time

Pacific USA	Eastern USA	UK	Central Europe	Japan	East Australia
April 2 2:30AM	April 2 5:30AM	April 2 10:30AM	April 2 11:30AM	April 2 6:30PM	April 2 7:30PM

Watch

• [NJPW World (Japanese Commentary)]()

Venue
Korakuen Hall
Tokyo, Japan
Match Card

Match			Notes	Time Limit
Great Bash Heel (Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma)	vs.	Yuto Nakashima & Oskar Leube	Tag Team Match	20
Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI)	vs.	Bullet Club (El Phantasmo, Taiji Ishimori & Gedo)	Six Man Tag Team Match	20
Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado, Ren Narita & Ryohei Oiwa	vs.	House of Torture (EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, SHO & Dick Togo)	Eight Man Tag Team Match	20
CHAOS (Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI & Toru Yano)	vs.	United Empire (Mark Davis, Kyle Fletcher & Great O-Khan)	Six Man Tag Team Match	30
Shota Umino, Ryusuke Taguchi & Boltin Oleg	vs.	TMDK (Zack Sabre Jr., Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita)	Six Man Tag Team Match (Boltin Oleg Debut)	30
Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Tiger Mask IV, YOH & Master Wato	vs.	Just 5 Guys (SANADA, Taichi, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, DOUKI & TAKA Michinoku)	Ten Man Tag Team Match	30
Shingo Takagi (c)	vs.	Aaron Henare	KOPW 2023 Championship Ultimate Triad Match

• Ultimate Triad Match: The first to achieve a pinfall, submission, and knockout (ten-count) is the winner. No time limit, no disqualification, no countout.

Useful Links

• /NJPW
• /NJPW Discord Server
• NJPW on Twitter (English)
• NJPW on YouTube (English)

#NJSG

Blockchain technology is evolving at a rapid pace, and scalability remains one of its most significant challenges. Enter BabyRottweiler, a polygon matic token leveraging the power of Polygon’s Layer 2 scalability solutions to create a more efficient and streamlined ecosystem. In this post, we will explore how BabyRottweiler benefits from Polygon’s unique hybrid construction, three-layer architecture, and staking contracts to deliver a superior user experience. #BabyRottweiler_ #Crypto #ETH #BRC #cryptocoin #altcoins #gems #bitcoin

I hear a lot of people say that the introduction of CBDCs will drive mass adoption of Bitcoin as people will reject the programmable and surveillable natures of such currencies.
But wouldn't these very characteristics of CBDCs allow governments to stop people buying Bitcoin? After all, what are you going to buy the Bitcoin with? With a centrally controlled currency, the government could pass a law banning Bitcoin and enforce that law by programming the new currency to not purchase Bitcoin and to surveil any attempts to do so.
I hope I am wrong but..

Yes, it is possible to have a social media presence without having a website. Social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, provide businesses with an opportunity to connect with their audience and promote their products or services without the need for a website.
However, having a website can provide several benefits for a business, including a central hub for all of its online activities and the ability to customize its brand and messaging. A website also provides a level of credibility and professionalism that can be difficult to achieve on social media alone.
Without a website, businesses should focus on building a strong social media presence by regularly posting engaging content, interacting with their audience, and using paid advertising to reach a wider audience. They should also ensure their social media profiles are complete, with accurate information and branding.
In summary, while it is possible to have a social media presence without a website, having a website can provide several benefits for a business, including a central hub for all of its online activities and the ability to customize its brand and messaging. However, businesses without a website can still build a strong social media presence by focusing on regularly posting engaging content, interacting with their audience, and using paid advertising to reach a wider audience.

What is the background to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and what are the details?Key Elements of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons
The Treaty has 11 provisions, the main elements of which are: nuclear states undertake not to transfer nuclear weapons directly or indirectly to non-nuclear states and not to provide assistance to non-nuclear states in the manufacture of nuclear weapons; non-nuclear states undertake not to manufacture nuclear weapons, not to receive the transfer of nuclear weapons directly or indirectly from other states, not to seek or receive assistance in the manufacture of nuclear weapons, and not to provide such assistance to other states; to stop the nuclear arms race and promote nuclear disarmament; to place peaceful nuclear facilities under the international safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency and provide technical cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
In accordance with the relevant provisions, the Treaty will remain in force for 25 years, during which review conferences will be held every five years to review the implementation of the Treaty.
The significance of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

1. Promotes the easing of international tensions and the strengthening of confidence among States in order to facilitate the cessation of the manufacture of nuclear weapons, the elimination of all existing stockpiles and the removal of nuclear weapons and their means of delivery from national arsenals in accordance with a treaty on general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control.
   
2. To promote the establishment and maintenance of international peace and security.
   

New Lightpoacher: "The Lightpoacher Unique Helmet no longer has Recover 4% of Life when you lose a Spirit Charge. It now has 100% chance to gain a Spirit Charge on Kill (previously 15-20%), and Gain 5% of Physical Damage as Extra Damage of each Element per Spirit Charge."
If you have 7 abyss jewels (2 in helm, 2 in Darkness Enthroned, 3 socketed in passive tree), this is 105% phys added as extra while you have momentum in a map.
With Shaper of Flames, this is a lot of extra damage for physical spells that ignite. EK and WoC are the best choices here, although if you want to be a hipster don't let me stop you running Glacial Cascade or Purifying Flame.
You can use Asenath's Gentle Touch and get a lot out of them here - Lightpoacher's phys as extra applies to corpse explosions and Shaper of Flames applies there too.
I feel like there's a very good squishy softcore zoomzoom build in this shell, and it could probably upgrade into something tanky with 75% chaos resist, Incandescent Heart, Aegis, Determination, Divine Shield and the amazing new armoES hybrid masteries.
You also are in the extremely weird position of wanting mods on abyss jewels that aren't generally chased after - you can use 0 damage abyss jewels that have some combination of life, ES, armor, ailment avoidance and even resists.
I think there's a real build here.