Embassy of Balder

Thanks for the welcome :blush:

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Delegate: Black Aspens (Revolution by Night)
Vice Delegate: Zander (Alvalero)
Ministers: Zander, Drop Your Pants and Topid
Speaker of Riksdag:(Talman) Govindia
Riksdag members:(ledamöters) Zander, C.I. Cerebella, Cold Ice and Hileville


Elections:​
The final two positions in Balder's Riksdag have been filled by former Council of State Minister Cold Ice and forum administrator Hileville after a week long election which took place between the 20th and 27th of July. Both candidates were elected with a vote of 8 Ayes and 1 Abstain, with both abstaining on themselves. With the Riksdag now full, the Riksdag has begun voting on 2 bills, the Accountability Bill and the State Succession Bill, both of which had been waiting for the final positions to be filled.

Military:​
Recent fashion has been for the feeders and sinkers to contest the Warzones, and, as stated in update volume 3, Balder has no desire to be left out. The Balder Regional Army was recently formed under the command of long time citizen Rachel Anumia and has been gaining a steady stream of members so far. Recently with help from The Black Market, the army completed its first operation outside of Balder owned territories, taking Warzone Europe in the name of our glorious homeland.

Tournaments:​

Tafl was a family of chess like board games spread by vikings throughout Europe which enjoyed popularity before the arrival of modern chess. One player controls a force of Muscovites, and the other controls a force of Swedes. The Muscovites try to capture the Swedish king, while the Swedes try and help their king escape off the edge of the board. Balder plans to host an interregional Hnefatafl (a specific variant) tournament, with each participating region collaborating as a team. If you would like your region to compete, kindly inform Black Aspens or the Balder diplomat attending to our embassy.

Balder is also hosting two fantasy league tournaments, managed by Zander, for the upcoming English premier league season, the Valtamrei Invitational Trophy and the NS Premier League. Both competitions are open for anyone to enter via http://fantasy.premierleague.com/ . The VIT uses the classic format of 'most points at the end of the season wins' while the NSPL is a head-to-head league like the actual premier league. If you are interested in joining the codes for both are as follows.

Code for the Valtamrei Invitational Trophy: 582804-149255 (classic format)
Code for the NS Premier League: 582804-149279 (head-to-head format)

More details on the tournaments will follow soon.


Thank you for taking the time to read this update ~ Zander
 
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Delegate: Charles Cerebella
Vice Delegate: Zander (Alvalero)
Ministers: Zander, Drop Your Pants, North East Somerset, Rach and Topid
Speaker of Riksdag:(Talman) Fuzzy
Riksdag members:(ledamöters) By Night, North East Somerset, Topid, Liberty and Solm.
Forum: http://s11.zetaboards.com/Balder/index/

Birthday Bash!​


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Balderites celebrating in the usual fashion!​

Balder is almost one year old! We are going to be celebrating Norse style from the 19th October and there will be plenty of drinking, celebrating and maybe a bit of pillaging thrown in and we want you to come in and join in with us! We will be having a Norse Avatar competition, plenty of birthday spam games, a Role Play party in Balder's hall of Breidablik, and a Role Play 'Zombie Vikings strike Balder'! We should also have an IRC quiz going on in #balder and hopefully some history threads posted up about our first year! We hope to see you here!

Elections Over!​


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Some of Balder's citizens heading to vote​

Upon the resignation of Hileville at the beginning of September, the task of finding his replacement for the remainder of his term started immediately. Only one candidate stepped forward for the position, Fuzzy, one of Balder's newest members, who was approved with a 10-0 vote.

Elections for the second term of the 2nd Balder Republic were due to start at the end of September but were never started by Riksdag speaker Govindia, who claimed he was waiting to get a list of citizens who were eligible to take part in the election. This angered a number of citizens and Riksdag members who rightly claimed that campaigning could have at least started without a list of eligible voters, which would only really be needed during the voting period. On October 1st, Govindia was recalled by the Riksdag for failing to start elections and was immediately replaced by Riksdag member Fuzzy, who begun Balder's election season immediately.

The position of Delegate and 6 seats in the Riksdag are up for grabs with 4 candidates for Delegate who are Charles Cerebella, Jamie, St. George and former Delegate Zander, while the 6 Riksdag seats have 8 candidates battling it out who are Govindia, Topid, Liberty, North East Sommerset, Solm, Tim, Fuzzy and outgoing Delegate Black Aspens (now named By Night).

The prospective Delegate's each began their campaigning with very promising manifestos, however during the campaign period difficulties arose within both the UDL and Osiris embassies and the trouble governing the Pan-Sinker Security Pact. These issues gave citizens a chance to ask the candidates the most difficult questions a prospective Balder Delegate has yet to get. Candidates answers were fairly similar but the citizens seemed very happy with each response. Going into the vote it looked like it would be very close between the candidates with it possibly being decided by a single vote. Questions for the prospective Riksdag members were more straight forward, with the main concern being on activity and changes to the constitution.

After almost a week of campaigning, a very long week might I add, voting finally begun. The Delegate election ended in a comfortable victory for Charles Cerebella who won by 6 votes over St George who finished 2nd.
There was a close race between Solm, Tim and Govindia for the 6th and final seat on the Riksdag with Fuzzy, By Night, NES, Topid and Liberty having a couple of votes to spare over the other 3 candidates. On the final day Solm and Tim pulled a few votes clear of Govindia with Solm beating Tim by a single vote in the end.

Delegate Election Results:

Charles Cerebella 11
=====================
St George 5
Zander 2
Jamie 1

Riksdag Election Results:

Fuzzy 14
By Night (Formerly Black Aspens) 14
North East Somerset 14
Topid 14
Liberty 13
Solm 9
======================
Tim 8
Govindia 5



Written by Charles Cerebella and Zander
 
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Delegate: Charles Cerebella
Vice Delegate: Zander (Alvalero)
Ministers: Zander, North East Somerset, Rach, By Night and Cold Ice
Speaker of Riksdag:(Talman) Fuzzy
Riksdag members:(ledamöters) By Night, North East Somerset, Bryan von Richthofen, Liberty and Solm.
Forum: http://s11.zetaboards.com/Balder/index/

New Year for Balder and New Delegate​


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New Delegate Charles Cerebella​

On the 19th October Balder kicked off its celebrations for its first birthday. With a zombie invasion of the region, that Balderites are still battling, as the centrepiece there was fun and games all round. Former Delegate Zander was triumphant in the Spam Points competition and Riksdag Delegate Liberty won the best Nordic Avatar competition. Zander, who is planning to create a historical society for Balder, also created a history of Balder's first year with all its ups and downs which you can check out here. To make the celebrations even better, during them the Delegacy finally changed hands from By Night, after 110 days of loyal service, to Charles Cerebella. A big thanks to Europeia, The New Inquisition and The Founderless Regions Alliance for aiding in the transfer! Also check out Jack Dixie's excellent interview/role play interview with Charles Cerebella here.

All change legislatively!​


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Riksdag Delegates debate the proposed Legislative Changes​

After a quiet previous term when only three bills were enacted it has been all go for the Riksdag this time! Already we have had two bills enacted: The Behaviour Abroad Act 2012 and The Promotion of Culture and Media Act 2012; we have had a change to the Pan-Sinker Security Pact and there have been three Constitutional amendments with changes to the workings of the Government and the Riksdag as well as some other smaller alterations. With around half of the term still left and the Riksdag still brewing many ideas it looks like the Members will have their work cut out!

Council of State Changes​

Things have been pretty busy in the Council of State too though unfortunately not all for the right reasons. Due to real life issues Topid has unfortunately been inactive almost from the very start of the term which eventually resulted in his removal both from the Council of State and from his seat on the Riksdag where Bryan von Richthofen won the closely fought by-election. Combined with activity problems for Drop Your Pants, who had to resign from Council because of them, it has meant that changes to our welcoming and naturalisation systems have been slower than would have been liked. Former Delegate By Night has been appointed to head these areas now though so it looks like we should have progress on that front very shortly. To add further to the problems in the Council, Culture Minister Rach has had to give up that portfolio due to exams draining her time though she has retained her seat to focus on getting Balder's military back up and running again. Former Riksdag Member Cold Ice has been appointed to take over that portfolio.

Balder at the World Fair​

With Nationstates celebrating its 10th Birthday, Balder duly took its place at the World Fair organised by Unibot. It was wonderful to see so many people and regions attending with Balder hosting a debauched Viking party which prompted some wonder at Europeia's Common-Sense Politics's ideas of what men's legs look like. Smooth, shaven and shapely apparently! In addition to our stall Balder has been involved in the discussions for a new COPS treaty with both Delegate Charles Cerebella and Foreign Minister North East Somerset actively participating in the discussions. Though discussions seemed to have died down rather Balder is still very interested in making progress on that front and we sincerely hope that we will be able to bring the talks to a successful conclusion other participants.

In Other News...​


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Riksdag Speaker Fuzzy​
  • Riksdag Speaker Fuzzy has opened a Comic Strip Market Stall for all of your amusing picture needs. Check it out here!
  • Discussions are going on for the introduction of an Honours system in the region with a series of Orders of Knighthoods proposed as well as our very own Collage of Arms. Hopefully in the next update we will be able to tell you who the first recipients have been. If you are interested you can read the talks here.
  • In an exciting game run by Minister By Night called Vassals, a take on the classic board game Diplomacy, the two alliance blocs of By Night and Liberty against Charles Cerebella and Fuzzy wear each other down to a stalemate after some fast paced agressive moves from Cerebella and By Night. You can see how it panned out here and sign up for the next game if you like the sound of it!
  • Our very own Norseman, Mr. Riket, has corrected us on the grammar of some of our Norse based names. Thank you to him!
  • We've been getting involved in Issue writing with Fuzzy coming up with an idea for a new one that he has now submitted! Hopefully it won't be too long until we see that come up in our inbox!
  • New Culture Minister Cold Ice has began discussions about a regional anthem for Balder with some very interesting, and odd, things being suggested so far! CI has also revived talks about a new oath based on the Norse 9 Noble Virtues.
  • In the Nation Challenge mini-game on Nationstates that is running as part of the anniversary celebrations, By Night claimed the top spot briefly for twenty minutes on the opening night. Congrats to him!



Written by Charles Cerebella.
 
Hi everyone, I'm Balder's new ambassador to your region, appointed by Foreign Minister North-East Somerset. I'm here to answer any questions or issues :).
 
Latest Update from Balder:

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King: Charles Cerebella
Prince: Zander (Alvalero)
Ministers: North East Somerset, Rach, By Night, Liberty and Cold Ice
Speaker of Riksdag:(Riksdagens Talman) Fuzzy
Riksdag members:(Riksdagsledamot) By Night, North East Somerset, Govindia, Zander and Rach
Forum: http://s11.zetaboards.com/Balder/index/

Balder becomes a Monarchy​

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King of Balder, Charles Cerebella​

After long deliberations by the Riksdag, Balder's Basic Law was amended to turn the region into an elective monarchy among other changes. Current Delegate Charles Cerebella will assume the crown of the region as King and former Delegates Zander and By Night, who oversaw the stabilisation of the region following our tumultuous start, will also be entitled be known as Kings of Balder as long as they make it clear they aren't the reigning monarch. In addition the Vice-Delegate position will now be known as Prince (thus making Zander a King of Balder, a Prince of Balder as well as our only Jarl (the highest honour that can be awarded). In other changes the Council of State has been renamed the Riksraadet (Council of the Realm) and the Riksdag term has been shortened from three months to two.


New Year Heralds Re-election of Delegate and New Riksdag​


The popular Delegate, Charles Cerebella, has won re-election as Delegate of the region. The leader of the Council of State, and Head of State ran the election unopposed and gained all 12 votes cast in favour of him retaining his position. Fuzzy, the outgoing Riksdagens Talsman, closed the vote on the 14th January, 2013. The Riksdag too was reelected after the term ended for the old Riksdag. Three old Riksdagsledamot exited their positions: Liberty, Bryan von Richthofen, and Solm. Solm had fallen inactive and had been a plaintiff in a court case towards the end of his term. Bryan cited real life issues, as did Liberty, for not standing for reelection. There were 7 candidates, with 6 new Riksdagsledamot being byNight, Fuzzy, Zander, Govindia, North East Somerset, and Rach. Congratulations to the winners and we hope that they have a successful term in office. Work has already begun on electoral reform and reform of the Risdag. Fuzzy has been reelected as Speaker of the Riksdag by the Riksdagsledamot. Govindia was his only challenger.

Here are the full election results for the Riksdag:

14 (17.5%)by Night
13 (16.3%)Fuzzy
12 (15%) Zander
8 (10%) Govindia
7 (8.8%) Eluvatar
13 (16.3%)North East Somerset
13 (16.3%)Rach


Riksraadet Changes​

Due to the requirement that neither the Riksdag or the Riksraadet may be made up of over half people who are members of the other body, Charles Cerebella had to make changes to his proposed cabinet due to their almost entire election to the Riksdag. As such, War Minister Rach was dropped as a Riksraadet position (given she has access anyway as ROOT administrator) and former Riksdag member Liberty was brought in as Minister for Media.

Bealtaine Accord​

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Celebrations marking the ratification of the Accord​

Towards the end of last term Balder ratified the Bealtaine Cultural Accord, brining us within a large group of regions who have pledged to open themselves up to cultural interaction. We look forward to taking part in future events and welcome any Bealtaine members to our forum!

End of Term Report from the Delegate to the Riksdag​

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Charles Cerebella giving the End of Term Report​

Charles Cerebella gave the traditional End of Term Report to the Riksdag on the 31st of December, 2012. He stated the advancements that Balder had made during the term and how Balder has begun to "strengthen [its] relations with the other sinkers through the amended PSSP". However, he also acknowledged how there is "room for improvement certainly but we have come a long, long way and every single person that has been active over this time here needs to be thanked for their contributions".

Click here for the full report.

In Other News...​


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New Jarl of Balder, Zander
​
  • The first set of New Years honours have been issued. The honours list included the first Jarl of Balder, Zander, the Order of Mirmir to NES, Order of Bragi to Rach and the Order of Forseti to byNight. Furthermore, the following Balder citizens recieved their Coat of Arms: Rach, Zander, by Night, Hileville, Charles Cerebella, North East Somerset, Drop Your Pants, Fuzzy, Cold Ice & Liberty. Three foreign nationals were also given Coat of Arms, the Delegates of our Sinker Allies: St George, Feux and Whamabama.
  • A court case over the removal of Solm from his seat in the Riksdag ended with the removal being upheld in court, by Charles Cerebella as adjudicator. The final verdict, however, was overturned by the Riksdag who repealed Clause 6 from Legislature section of the Constitution (a clause that had been implemented by the same Riksdag).
  • In a restart to Balder's military, the Jomsvikings, War Minister Rach has seen us actively involved in the Warzones since the New Year with Balder leading a mission in Warzone Sandbox and also aiding in Lazarus's eventful occupation of Warzone Europe among other missions.



Written by Liberty and Charles Cerebella.
 
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