Article
Hello Everyone o/
This is the second article in a set that explains some programs and events some of us would like to bring over from other places.
Today's article is going to add a little more description to a collection of programs that I will refer to as the "eJapan Roleplay Project" (eJRP) from now on. Two programs from this collection have been mentioned in my last article as the Family/Clan program and the Daimyo system. I will now go into greater detail over how the family/clan program works. The Daimyo system versions will require their own articles, as they get really complicated.
Forming Families
The entire eJRP uses the formation of families as the foundation for its systems. For that reason, the family program is meant to be simple, robust, and attractive to all players. The way we will take applications and keep records is through a Google docs questionnaire that has already been tested and proven to work. This allows for families to register at their leisure and for the government to always be able to have the registration records on hand even if there is a forgetful minister handling things. But lets get into describing the families themselves.
What will the families be like?
The vast majority about how the family works is left up to the players to decide, but as I mentioned we have a questionnaire already setup to get some basic information and set a general framework. The history, the relations between members, and how the family operates internally are all left up to the players. For an example, I will give you the description of my family from the game I came from.
Family Name: 秀吉 (Hideyoshi)
Members and Relationships: WillEden (Brother), Nicolas (Brother), Sliversun (Brother), etc. etc.
Family leadership: Elder Council
Family Head: Elder Councilors
New Membership acceptance: Family wide vote (Two thirds majority required)
How are family laws decided: Elder council vote (Two thirds majority required)
Member expulsion procedure: Elder council vote (Two thirds majority required)
Is your family part of a Clan or Independent: Independent
Family Mythology and History: Descendants of the goddess Konohanasakuya-hime, it is said that the most beautiful and ancient of eJapan's Sakura trees were planted by their first generation. Through history they refined their sense of aesthetics, obtained from tending the Cherry Blossom trees, to a variety of other professions. Today, their most prominent members are politicians that still employ their eye for beauty as a way to obtain support and develop popular legislation.
That is actually a short description of what a family can be like. I saw some families that got really into the game and made very complex and interesting descriptions/methods of operation for themselves. But anyways, if you can fill in a description for most the above points (you don't have to come up with a mythology/history section if you don't want to), then you will have pretty much have all the information needed to register your family.
Family Relations and Marriages
As you saw in the last section, my family was all brothers. When forming a family you don't actually have to put everyone in any particular roles. My family wanted everyone to feel like equals so we all registered ourselves as siblings. Other families registered themselves as having a single parent and various offspring or as husband and wife (you only need two members to register a family). So if you want to register a family, don't worry about it making sense, its better to make everyone's relationships something they like or find fun.
We do however have a special event for a certain type of relationship. That is husband and wife
(or husband+husband, or Wife+Wife)
When a family forms with members that register themselves as married, we give them the option to have an official marriage ceremony. The ceremony can then be held in a variety of ways as well as public or private. The most basic wedding ceremony consists of a government official (Either the CP or MoCH that handles the family program) presiding over the event as the couple makes their vows. This can be done in IRC (which allows you to invite guests) or through an article written by the presiding official. In the article version, the official will write out his own lines and then copy down the couple's vows to each other. The article is then published and the couple are asked to write their "I do"s in the comment section. As I said though, that is the most basic format and the couple that is being married can come up with their own ideas for a more complex ceremony that the government will try to help make happen
Clans
Clans are essentially extended families. For a clan to form, at least two families must agree to a union. The registration for a clan follows the same basics as the registration for a family, except you need both family heads to confirm the union. And that's pretty much it lol. Now you might be wondering why people would form clans when they can just form families. Remember though that the family and clan program was meant to be a foundation for other programs. In those other programs, clans will have a distinct advantage over families due to a point system we named the Prestige System. The description and how it ties to the advantage of clans over families will follow.
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The Prestige System
The Prestige System is a way for families and clans to get points that will count in various programs that are a part of the eJapan Roleplay Project. The concept behind this system is that in real life, families that had members perform great feats or in some way do something notable would gain influence or "Prestige" that they could use to gain more power for themselves. As a real world example of a prestigious family, any of you familiar with American politics could probably recognize the Bush and Kennedy families if they were named. Let me give you some examples of what could get you some Prestige points:
Becoming a Congressman
Leading a large or powerful Military Unit
Being elected Country President
Becoming a Minister
Dealing the most damage in a battle for Japan
Now then, with the above examples some of you will notice a trend. The things you can get points for will also benefit the country in some way. In the first stages of developing this point system this was actually a coincidence, but we decided to roll with it. Now we have such events as "Studying abroad" where you get a foreign player to join your family and have them become a Japanese citizen (This only counts after a certain amount of time though. CS passes are valuable so there will be no attempting to cheat the system
). So participating is not only fun but also helps out the entire country 
Now then, before I had mentioned that with this point system, clans will have an advantage over families. That advantage is both built in and relies on simple real world logic. Even if there weren't other systems in the eJRP, it is easier to manage a large group of people through a multi-tiered system. That is one reason that countries have state/regional governments and state governments then have county governments which then have town governments. Another simple logic reason to have a clan is that not everyone will always get along personally. This means that your family members don't always have to get along with the members of other families in the clan. The family heads that report to the clan leadership will be the ones doing most of the interaction. This also means that families can leave a clan they just don't get along with rather than a large family having an internal war where members will need to be periodically kicked out to keep the peace. As for the eJRP reasons for a clan having an advantage, a couple of games/programs attached to this will require clans and treat independent families as mercenaries or support for clans.
Phew, ok that's it for today's article. While this description is pretty detailed it does not actually cover all the rules for the Family/Clan program and the Prestige System. Those will be published if the government decides to enact the eJRP. But now you pretty much know how it will work if it does get started. Be sure to leave a comment about any ideas, concerns, or whether or not you like these ideas
This was an article about families, so now have some lolis to get you in the family making mood
Previous article:
Gov programs and Cultural Events (11 years ago)
Next article:
The Ministry of Culture and History (11 years ago)
About the game:
USA as a world power? In E-Sim it is possible!
In E-Sim we have a huge, living world, which is a mirror copy of the Earth. Well, maybe not completely mirrored, because the balance of power in this virtual world looks a bit different than in real life. In E-Sim, USA does not have to be a world superpower, It can be efficiently managed as a much smaller country that has entrepreneurial citizens that support it's foundation. Everything depends on the players themselves and how they decide to shape the political map of the game.
Work for the good of your country and see it rise to an empire.
Activities in this game are divided into several modules. First is the economy as a citizen in a country of your choice you must work to earn money, which you will get to spend for example, on food or purchase of weapons which are critical for your progress as a fighter. You will work in either private companies which are owned by players or government companies which are owned by the state. After progressing in the game you will finally get the opportunity to set up your own business and hire other players. If it prospers, we can even change it into a joint-stock company and enter the stock market and get even more money in this way.
In E-Sim, international wars are nothing out of the ordinary.
Become an influential politician.
The second module is a politics. Just like in real life politics in E-Sim are an extremely powerful tool that can be used for your own purposes. From time to time there are elections in the game in which you will not only vote, but also have the ability to run for the head of the party you're in. You can also apply for congress, where once elected you will be given the right to vote on laws proposed by your fellow congress members or your president and propose laws yourself. Voting on laws is important for your country as it can shape the lives of those around you. You can also try to become the head of a given party, and even take part in presidential elections and decide on the shape of the foreign policy of a given state (for example, who to declare war on). Career in politics is obviously not easy and in order to succeed in it, you have to have a good plan and compete for the votes of voters.
You can go bankrupt or become a rich man while playing the stock market.
The international war.
The last and probably the most important module is military. In E-Sim, countries are constantly fighting each other for control over territories which in return grant them access to more valuable raw materials. For this purpose, they form alliances, they fight international wars, but they also have to deal with, for example, uprisings in conquered countries or civil wars, which may explode on their territory. You can also take part in these clashes, although you are also given the opportunity to lead a life as a pacifist who focuses on other activities in the game (for example, running a successful newspaper or selling products).
At the auction you can sell or buy your dream inventory.
E-Sim is a unique browser game. It's creators ensured realistic representation of the mechanisms present in the real world and gave all power to the players who shape the image of the virtual Earth according to their own. So come and join them and help your country achieve its full potential.
Invest, produce and sell - be an entrepreneur in E-Sim.
Take part in numerous events for the E-Sim community.
