About the war: it looks like Vix is taking over Dimwood, the Tiramoran war goal. Meanwhile Perdan is taking over Ar Mosul. Fronts are shifting, but I'll believe that in a week or so Vix will have taken Dimwood and Ar Mosul will still be theirs. That will balance things out (certainly because Dimwood borders BOTH capitals).
Vix actually won battles in the past week. Not sure if apathy will still set in after those events. We'll see. Perdan could be more communicative, but I suppose I can't demand everyone to constantly chatter, and it's proving hard for myself to do that as well. Hence why I continue to strive for a division of positions. As such the burden is shared, as well.
And yes, perhaps a pre-defined war is not ideal. I'll counter all those arguments, though, by stating we are in a balanced war with very frequent battles, while the others on the continent (or entire other continents) are sitting around idle boring the players of this game. I have repeatedly seen it written that BM is to be played like you would play a boardgame with friends. Well, I have the feeling we're playing a version of Risk, and it's definitely not set in the cold war period. I'll go even further: I am a big fan of Paradox' Grand Strategy Games. In those games (in accordance to history), it is the norm to declare war on someone with the specific goal of taking a region (varying in size). It's even impossible to kill a realm that is not tiny. Perhaps Battlemaster's community has evolved to a point where war often leads to destruction or turning a realm irrelevant. Considering that, I prefer this war over the countless of other wars in Battlemaster that have more vague declarations of wars, often boiling down to "a slight has been made" or "this is not in our geopolitical interest". The war between Perdan and Vix is about real ground, a real region. It doesn't go further than that, but does it really have to? I disagree. It's possible, but not necessary. We have chosen the latter option. It's a valid choice, that benefit both realms the most. Besides, by turning this into a defined not-entirely-destructive one versus one, we ensured that both realms would not get roflstomped by some bigger realm. As well as ensuring that both realms are now the core of this war, not some auxiliary force that supports a much bigger army. Also, not having to account for allies makes planning your battles and wars a thousand times easier.
I honestly have no qualms about what this war is, even if it may be perceived as a fake war. I know I am doing the right thing for my realm and I know Zakky has the same idea. The single most important thing you do as a ruler is creating and nurturing a fun experience for the players who have chosen to play in your realm. I am completely confident that I am doing this. Any outside criticism is irrelevant to me.
