The Electoral Debate - Question Two

[DONT PANIC]

Thus ends question one.

Thank all three of you for your answers and participation. This was an enlightening read! As we move on to the next question, please remember to stay on topic and please do not continue the old topic.

Remember, you may write a rebuttal to your opponents AFTER all three candidates have given their primary stance.



Question Two:

War is on the breath of most residents of Ephia's Well. Depending on who you ask, we are in numerous different wars. Between Qa'im, The Thousand Clans and Nusrum, the Sibilant, Cultists, et al.. where do we put our priority, in order to ensure that Ephia's Well grows and the Heron soars?

Luck is wished to all participants.


-Jordan Clearcreek,
Captain of the Heron Company,
Scholar, Philosopher, Moderator of this Debate.

[1dboy]

Our priority should not be upon the enemies outside of our walls, but of the people who we can utilize in our own city. Each and every time our forces are amassed, they are an unorganized troop of mercenaries, with pockets of leadership found among the citizenry. Al-Sayyadin was a proper answer to the problem, but I think it did not go far enough.

It needs to be a reoccuring position within our government, organized by the legates themselves, or someone who is approved upon by both legates, to rally the efforts of our militaristic endeavors. Specifically, I would enjoy having Banda or Fourth led operations. An official title is unnecessary to provide for this effort; just both legates would approve of either or taking the mantle for initiatives, settled each month at assembly to determine who will be taking the mantle for the month.

For the wars itself, we are mostly blind in the scheme of our neighboring areas. The maps of the Torchbearers provide detailed locations of where the raiding bands may be, but we do not have consistent, accurate information. To this end, our scouts need to properly assess the movements of the Orcs, the Sibilant, and elsewise.

Lastly, we should never face the enemy in open battle as we did in Red Hill. Our forces number around an active fifty. Skirmishes, precise strikes, disrupting trade routes, espionage, and any other strategic advantage we can find to slowly eliminate the threat would be the best answer. As mentioned earlier, having a Banda or Janissary led operation would allow our people to pursue these sorts of activities, and I would expect weekly reports on their activities while acting as the lead in our war front. The effort of all of this will lead to a slow bleed of any larger force, and provide a decisive victory, rather than a pyrrhic one. 

Once our operations are a well greased wagon, we may then consider pressing onto larger and more difficult foes. With disciplined, well trained armed citizens, our force will no longer become the phalanx, often described as the slow and cumbersome beast of the battlefield, but the Maniple, a jointed military formation, allowing for veteran and recruit alike to switch to and from position with ease.

To summarize, we should concentrate our efforts on disciplining an actual army, instead of reliance on a ragtag band of adventurers, before we even consider engaging in actual war. Our neighbors have already perfected their craft. We are lacking in comparison, and because of the number difference, the quality of our force must be prioritized over anything else. 

[WriterX]

Ephia's Well is in a very difficult situation, for even when we would choose to distance ourselves from conflict, our enemies tend to come to us. We might recall in the past, Orc raids upon the Gate of Roses, Melek attacks upon our walls, brooker and cult attacks in the Sewers. Even when we think we can push these matters aside, or ignore them the truth unfortunately is that while we might prepare to fight a singular, specific enemy, it is folly to lower our guard when one foe is defeated, and we feel we can rest easily.

Our conflict is constant, because our foes and enemies do not choose to surrender their arms and retire, they continue to try again, and again. When one is beaten back, another will rise to challenge us once more, and this cycle continues.

Even when we look to more distant history, the Old City itself was at one point dominated by the Sibilant Empire, and even when they were defeated they continued to be the thorn to many a people, present in numerous Rings. In Centuries past, many warlords of the Thousand Clans rose up, leading the Clans to fight the Caliphate and later the Sultanate, each time defeated, each time regrouping and trying once more.

Even Qa'im did not have a single decisive conflict, and instead a series of conflicts, greater and smaller, leading to the current uneasy stalemate between the Sultanate and Qa'im.
And the Cults rise and fall as quickly as weeds. Some two months ago we had the Butcher, a Brooker who after a long spree was finally hunted down. Before that we had a gnomish brooker, who brought down a meteorite, and unleashed horrors, at the behest of his Djinn masters. Every time we catch them, execute them, defeat them it is only a matter of time before another group or individual rises up attempting to follow some dark creed.

So the answer is two-fold, for right now we are in conflict most clearly with Thousand Clans and the Sibilant Empire, or rather the Melek who also aid them and the Wyrm. We are also weary of Qa'im infiltrators, and the Cults that appear in our city. There are those engagements that are clearly visible, audible, the raids we perform, the battles we fight. Yet at the same time, there are those the public might not be aware of, where Brookers and Cultists are hunted down, where Qa'immi sympathisers or agents are dealt with swiftly.
 
To prioritize one over the other is simply not feasible, because we must be in a constant state of readiness, for we do not know when or who may strike next or what opportunity for us to strike may arise. Recall, even the recent battle against the Melek, it wasn't anything we planned or prepared for, it was spontaneous. We accidentally obtained the battle plans of our enemy and rode out to meet them. The Raids, while they seem to happen regularly, are based on intelligence we gather, what our scouts report back about. There is no frontline we send our people to, no standing army that we supply or arm in the next region over. We have a number of forces, here in the Well, ready to protect the Well from a direct attack, or to send them out for military operations further out, while also having to protect and maintain the Well internally. 

We should, of course, prioritize, but opportunities to end any of our ongoing conflicts with any sort of finality have yet to come up. Like a drawn out duel, where both opponents are equal, the fight will continue until, eventually, that clear opening or failure on our enemy's side is visible, while we ourselves try to not offer them an equal opportunity to strike at us, harm us.

Our ongoing conflict with Diakos and Iakmes will continue until either both sides collapse, or they are kept in a permanent stalemate, thus granting us relative peace. And while this war on the surface is happening we must keep a weary eye below, internally, for cultists, brookers and agents of foreign powers that would seek to infiltrate and weaken us.

There is no simple answer here, for we are not at War with a single neighbour, we are not at war with one enemy. We are in a state of constant preparedness, for we cannot ever truly know peace until we are certain that all those forces known, and unknown, that would seek to strike at us in any form will be unable to do so. And unfortunately, as I mentioned before, from what we have seen thus far; we strike down one, another rises.   

Keeping all the military arms of the Accord strong, and never underestimating the threats as they arise will be key toward our survival. While I had high hopes for sponsoring certain citizen ventures, such as the Al-Sayaadin, it is clear that for such a thing to work we would need a man capable of organizing and maintaining such a thing.

That said, at the very least, I would hope that one day our own Citizens, those more inclined to fight, would be trained as a sort of militia or citizen army within the Well itself. People who while not part of the Janissaries or the Rose could still be organized and oppose those threats that come toward our city. Men, who after becoming Citizens are ready to stand and protect their home, for they are a part of it.

As to these dangers lurking in the Gutters, among us, all we can do is remain vigilant, allow those trained, experienced, knowledgeable to handle them as they rise up. Among the Accord are such men who continue to perform such duties, and time and again they manage to identify and handle them accordingly. What we ought to do, what the Pyramid should do, is grant them the resources necessary to perform such work efficiently, with as little obstruction as possible.

This may not be the answer many had hoped for, for it does not simply identify one problem, or set our gaze upon a single thing, in plain, simple words, but I wish to point out that in the state that we are in we cannot afford to avert our gaze from one enemy to face another, for to do so is to invite a dagger in our back.

[One_With_Nature]

War is a concern that should always be on the mind of any competent leader. Defence has been a great concern of mine and will be a top priority should I be elected your legate. There are three key areas that I believe we should be focused on in this regard.
 
The first; making Ephia's well a difficult target for invasion or infiltration. Currently there are various weaknesses in our defences, namely the Sand Gate and invasion from below as the recent Melek invasions have highlighted. We need to strengthen our walls, sure up our our weaknesses and ensure that we are ready for these invading forces.

The more difficult we make it for our walls to be breached the more difficult a target we make ourselves and the safer our people will be. I have personally already been working with my engineer to produce siege weapon that can be deployed in rapidly in defence of our city, that I would seek to produce in greater quantity to make sure our defenders are ready. We must also spend time and resources investigating methods by which we may detect underground incursions through the sand tunnels or gutters.

Secondly; Prevention has always been one of Ephia's strengths, seeking out the enemy to halt their efforts before they can reach our walls. The Legion and Banda both provide execellent scouting services reporting back information from the field serving as our eyes and ears. We should also take advantage of other such valuable groups who offer these services such as the Torch Bearers and the Sage Brush Corps.

I believe we need to take this a step further however and have scout specifically tracking the movements of identified threats and learning how we might best strike at them. For example Diakos is currently warring with the clans in the Ramparts, do we know why? What does he want there? Where our his food and water supply lines coming from? All of this is valuable information we can pursue to thwart our enemies efforts before they become a threat at our gates. We must fund and support further efforts to this end.

Thirdly; Leadership of our defences. In my experience there is usually one leader when we march out to battle, often under the banner of the Banda Rossa or Legion whom have great experience in such matters, which is fine in principle however many often splinter off into their own factions, and lack the discipline of a true army.

We can not expect citizens who put their life at risk to possess the discipline of a soldier, however what we can do is provide a central figure with whom all men and women from all factions can look to for leadership. This person must  possess the necessary skills to command and be respected by the people, as such this position should be agreed upon by the assembly and by accorded members.

I do not claim myself to be a battle commander and that is why I will surround myself with advisors that are experienced in such matters. The peoples safety is paramount and we must continue to constantly review our defences to ensure long term prosperity and to forge our home into a fortress that is not to be trifled with.

[1dboy]

The responses of both my adversaries simply sum up to a few things. 'We need better defenses.' 'We need a leader.', and 'We need proper organization.' Yet neither of them properly explain how they will achieve these things.

My response was curt, simple, and to the point. With monthly determinations of either Banda or Janissary taking control of the movements of our military, approved by both legates, organization and leadership is immediately found. By this provision alone, it is an assurance that the most prominent militaristic forces in our Well are always at our forefront, who already have experience and trustworthy leadership created by the nature of their factions.

Secondly, this leads into answer I provided earlier. With Ricario's provision of 'Let's make citizenship free.', the means to provide any sort of funding to any militaristic operation without highly taxing the citizens of our home becomes an inevitability. By removing a consistent and reliable tax, our funds for the allotment drop drastically, and the only hope you have is for you to trust the expectation Ricario may be able to fund anything at all.  I've been a merchant for months, and even I would be hard pressed to amass the funding needed to support our esteemed Accord and our people. We would not have the means to support any war with his desperate bid for the seat.

On the other hand, Marcellus provides the same reliable, cautious response. Yes, it 'works'. Yes, it's 'fine'. But are we okay with 'fine'? Ephia's Well is our home. Too often do we lower our head and simply accept the easiest option. It'd be easier to approve Marcellus again. It'd be fine for have another two months of deadlock, our government never grasping for the ambition we all hold in our hearts. It'll be fine to always look to Ba'zeel overhead, and expect assistance whenever we are truly in trouble. It'll be fine to never break free of the bondage we have consistently found ourselves in.

I drift from the point of the debate, but genuinely, anyone who isn't me would've provided the same responses as these two have. That is the difference between me and my adversaries. I will not stay to the same tricks and tactics that work, simply because 'they work'. My goal is to inspire and bring ingenuity to the Well. That is what I mean by I shall offer change.

Let's start building the road toward the greatness we covet, people of the Heron. Within my vision, I see the gaps of our government, and I will close them all to ensure that our future, one where we are the glittering diamond of the Desert, shall come to pass.

[One_With_Nature]

In response I shall say my initial answer was quite clear on how I would seek to achieve the three goals and what areas I would focus on. There is of course the matter of funding which my rival didn't elaborate on themselves.

I do not mean to shift the course of discussion, but readers will clearly see I have no intention of abolishing citizenship over night and I have proposed many such ways to increase our coffers. I would only reduce the price of citizenship over time until it is no longer required and we have far more funding coming in then we have now.

Ariel is indeed a merchant, but the facts are quite clear, an inferior merchant who is not even in the same league as me. I personally have turned over nearly 130,000 dinars in just over two months, many of which have been re-invested back into the well and its people, over 20,000 of which have been invested into the new district.

I actually see the potential we have in the well  to generate vast amounts of wealth that we may apply to efforts such as this, my rival just lacks the vision to achieve such. She speaks of change but in the same breath she talks of keeping things as they are, which has not bolstered our coffers to the level that is needed to achieve these goals.
 
I say to the people consider the experience of those of us before you and when it comes to such put your faith in those who can deliver on their promises. I have the vision and ability to lead us to prosperity.

[1dboy]

Ricario again provides that, only he may provide the steps toward Ephia's prosperity. Undoubtedly, if he had unlimited time and energy, he would inevitably fund Ephia's Well. However, what my once compatriot fails to understand is that he shall only have two months in office, and he claims to have already donated 20,000 dinar to the New District over the course of two months.

So, when he takes office, he'll generate another twentythousand or so for the New District. For those who are unaware, that is the cost of around four voices. And with a lip service, he doesn't really elaborate on where he shall generate the large amounts of wealth he boldly claims. Drastic measures would have to be taken to guarantee that promise. Our citizens would have to be taxed, or he would have to declare war on a neighbor, a war that he himself already claims to have no experience in.

Unless my rival intends to speak on how he shall generate his wealth, I would be careful with what he promises so loftily. In the books I've read, those who over promise wind up with a knife in the back, as they fail to deliver on any of their deals made before acquiring power.