the Zoners

[Jinx]

it has been a while that there was a feedback about the zoners, - the NPC faction. - and things are moving on. i d like to see what people think how the zoners as a NPC faction should be like, how they react to others - and how they should be treated.

this is about political power, military power, cultural influence, coercion, manipulation - in general... where do the zoners head towards... .

it has been a few months now that the zoners have installed and enforced a stricter neutral zone policy - that they have set their direct influence around their systems and stations. - there has also been a change of powers with the vanishing of the Asgard Warriors that left some sort of a political gap in omicron-theta.

the new expansion / upgrade will bring more than just a few new models - but also global changes to multiple factions... changes that affect most and foremost the factions that operate ... siriuswide. ( BHG, Zoners, Phantoms, LSF, the Order, the Junkers - and to a lesser extend the Wild and the Nomads )

so it feels like its time to check where we stand at the moment.

so if possible, i d like to hear opinions about the following main topics:

- what are the zoners today? - are they still what they were when they set off from the core to live a more independent life in the rim systems?
- what political powers do the zoners have? - that concerns the visible and obvious influence in the core systems ( goverments and cooperations ) - and their political influence within the pirate groups.
- what influence do the zoners have underneath the surface? manupilations, intreigues, coercion within the lawful factions and the pirate factions... what powers do they have to get what they want - to make others do what they want them to do?
- what economic powers do they have? simply speaking.... how much are they dependent on the economy and how much does the economy depend on them. - how much do the factions depend on them and how much do they depend on the factions. how much are they intertwined - think of it as if the zoners were suddenly vanishing without a replacement... what would happen.
- do the zones spread their ethnics, their "culture"? - they certainly have "views" - how do they "grow" the community - are there many that join them even nowadays? - and for that... what reasons would someone have that joined today ( as opposed to joining in the days of the beginning )
- how much military power do the zoners really have ( just your opinion ) - meaning ... how much can and DO they threaten others to get their will. - officially, they are one peaceful faction. but what does it look like unofficially.


these are all questions concerning ONLY the NPC faction as such - and its developement. not the players or playerfactions.

i d be grateful to read some thoughts about them ... especially before 4.85 comes out. ( it also helps to develope some sort of an idea of a faction ... especially a faction that is rather vague when it comes to their agenda and their capabilities )


edit: i guess one could ( should ) do that with every faction every now and then to check how the perception of the faction develops. - we claim to play vanilla, but things move on.... gotto make sure things don t move faster than the idea of a faction.

---

Shipdesigns made for DiscoveryGC

[Ash]

Neutral, Simple

It's what they do and it's what their stations are for.

EDIT: Even though you do have some zoners these days who do tend to outstep that RP boundary such as the TAZ. In my opinion anyway.

---

[Kambei]

"Dudes which live somewhere far.... yea I think I saw some few years ago or they was miners from GMG? I dont know. I heard they are hippies but budy from work told me he saw zoners rob someone in omega 5... huh They are far I dont care."

that text above is in my opinion typical view of ordinary man from Liberty or Rheinland....

---

[bluntpencil2001]

They aren't just about neutrality. That's an effect, not their goal, I think.

They are people that for various reasons, don't want to be a part of society as a whole in the Houses. Somewhat anarchist, to a degree, but this would depend on the Freeport.

At any rate, the Zoners aren't as powerful as repeatedly put forth here. If you look at their bases, the population isn't that high. Freeport 1, for instance, fears Bretonian takeover. Freeport 9 fears Corsairs. Freeport 2 fears both Liberty and Rheinland.

They don't really contribute a huge deal to the economy either, attempting to set themselves apart, not needing the Houses' economies, not relying on stable markets in the Houses. They are independent both in the literal sense of the word, but also in the resource and finance aspect. The Houses couldn't care less what they get up to, since they aren't involved in large-scale commerce, either importing or exporting, since they are a small movement, and attempt to subsist on their own produce (with Synth Foods help). The rumours seem to suggest that they trade in necessities with other independent minded, fringe groups, like the IMG, GMG and similar, as well as getting luxuries through dealing in credits with the Houses and pirates.


They don't get attacked, largely due to providing peaceful surroundings and not being aggressive. They seem to manage a subsistence living on their Freeports, with no expansionary agenda.
Zoner should be careful not to see themselves as necessary or indespensable to anyone or anything. That will only cause complancency and get them swiftly eradicated. Even the Zoners on Freeport 9 have to work hard to keep the Corsairs from attacking.

All in all, if we assume Gran Canaria isn't heavily populated, the Zoners will be lucky to be more than a million people. If Gran Canaria is heavily populated, which is unlikely, since they are abandoning the Houses and such societal structures, I still can't see them having a population greater than that of modern England.

A very interesting movement, yes, but not as important when it comes to nation-scale matters as others, such as the GMG and IMG who have vast natural resources and the capability to utilise them, or corporations likie Samura and BMM who have the ears of heads of state.

Their goals will most likely revolve around being left to mind their own business, without folk telling them what to do, not governments, not corporations, and not other Zoners either.

---

[Rudo]

The question about manipulation would be what the Zoners are aiming for in the bigger picture. They've established themselves as the dominant 'authority' (for lack of a better term) out in the border and edge worlds. They run stations accessible to all and profit from people using them.

What more do they want? Where do they go from here?

I can't think of anything myself. I'm heading up a very similar faction and I'm hitting these same walls, except the fact that we're expanding into the houses as well makes it easier to come up with short-term goals.

I think the future of the NPC faction lies in the continuing saga of each individual freeport. Stuff like the Anti-BMM sentiment of Freeport 1, or the Zoner-Corsair romance story at Freeport 5. While the Zoners are more or less a confederacy, each freeport is its own territory and generally autonomous. Every station's story is unique.

That doesn't help much, but hopefully that may break it down into more manageable chunks for you.

---

[Jinx]

every bit is interesting - opinions going from "just neutral" to assuming that they are powerful or weak ... i hope there ll be more opinions incoming... cause it would be interesting to see how it reflects on how the players behave. ( me included )

---

Shipdesigns made for DiscoveryGC

[bluntpencil2001]

As a point of curiosity, Jinx, what is your current thought on the matter?

---

[Captain]

well, I'm a Zoner trader, I flied a zoner cruiser in the past, for the protection of FP1 and 2,
but I always, stayed neutral, unless they where fighting someone within the NO-FIRE zone around every freeport, then ofcourse depending on who where fighting I asked them to leave the No fire zone. for me that was 5k,

im still with the trader vessel, and I will never Choose a Side. unless they harm or have harmed Zoners,

I think Zoner can be VERY powerfull but also very weak

---

[jammi]

In short, I don't think the Zoners should have the Juggernaut, they are not powerful enough. They are a fringe movement of anarchists and free-thinkers. They are not warriors or tacticians and they are not a House. I also do not believe they are a unified 'family' like the Junkers. They are a combination of cultures and societies that has simply been given the tag 'Zoners' because it's easier than having several thousand different factions each describing the scope of each of the Zoner's parts role is.

Another few aspects that irk me are:

One) seeing Zoners in Liberty. Read the news stories. They state that Liberty knows Zoners support pirates and because of this will arrest any Zoners that enter Liberty Core space.

Two) Zoners in Bretonia - they don't understand what would happen if the Bretonians discovered Gran Canaria. A fully resource laden planet, that is perfectly habitable = Eden for the Bretonians. Seriously, once it's been discovered the Dunkirks roll in and murder happens.

Three) Zoners who think they are invincible. I have taken to specifically targeting Zoners doing the Cambridge>Kurile run simply because I have grown to hate the faction with such a powerful loathing. The repetitive, 'you cna not tax me - im neutral lulz' drives me up the wall! go out and read the rumours! On Leon alone you'll find two rumours that attest to the fact Corsairs kill Zoners!

---

News article library, feedback and content requests.

[Captain]

Well, those Zoners saying "you cna not tax me - im neutral lulz"
arent treu Zoners, I have seen many pirates, they always asked polite a Donation, I mostly pay between 1 and 2 mill, but that doesnt mean I CANT BE TAXED, Zoners are neutral to every human, I like to keep it that way,
and I RP it tht way

---