Yuri Armstrong

[quote name='Caleb279' timestamp='1281827416' post='2416120'] Call it whatever you want, the best nations get there by smart tech raiding.[/quote] No, the best nations get to where they are by nation building, improvement swapping, trade circles, etc. Going into war actually stunts growth and makes your people unhappy. You'd probably be better off letting your nation grow on its own rather than stealing the hard work of other people. [quote]Call it whatever you want, the best nations get there by smart tech raiding. Its a fun part of the game, and the whiners and complainers are just nations either too weak to defend themselves, too stupid to join an alliance, or are attention whores.[/quote] No, we are leaders of sovereign nations who are suffering unprovoked attacks due to the greed of war profiteers such as Mr. Nixon. Such vile insults should be directed towards those who are too lazy to build their nation on their own and, like parasites, subsist on the resources of other nations.

[quote name='Ketther' timestamp='1281818177' post='2415967'] So tell me Yuri, did the police help you? Or will you wait for the war to expire and then say you already won. I see in all these days he did not attack you again, so it was a standard update blitz/raid. WHAT are you talking about then? Are you whining because he didn't send you the peace offer? He doesn't attack, you do not attack. This war will end anyway. [/quote] You use the word whining implying that I have no right to complain about this unprovoked attack on my nation, but I believe it is every ruler's right to make such injustices known to the public. He has been inactive since his blitz because he has not read his messages or issued further attacks, nor even respond to my peace offer. I am simply stating that if he were a decent ruler then he would kindly pay me the reparations that I deserve. If you do not like when people make tech raids known to the public, then you should raid nations that are leaving the games, or simply not raid at all.

[quote name='nippy' timestamp='1281808999' post='2415862'] Laziness? Techraiding is lazy? Perhaps you're referring to your own laziness in not ensuring your nation was in a protected state....ah, yes..that makes sense.[/quote] No, the laziness in that he is not willing to participate in tech deals and nation building, so instead he steals other people's hard work. As I have stated before there is always some nation higher than you in the rankings, so if you're unaligned there's not that much you can really do. [quote]lol!!![/quote] I come here and treat the goons and tech raiders with respect even if I disagree with their actions. I simply ask that you afford the same amount to me. [quote]...then what in the hell are you crying about? [/quote] The fact that he attacked my nation for no reason, killed 181 of my men, seized my nation's farmland, destroyed our highways and schools, etc. These losses are terrible but I am simply saying I will be able to replace what I have lost. [quote]rational, eh? He obviously doesn't read this forum, otherwise he would have posted by now.[/quote] More like he never logs on. He has yet to read my messages. I was hoping for a response by now but it appears he has gone inactive. [quote]nope.[/quote] It is common decency to treat all nation rulers with respect. We are all leaders of our respective sovereign nations. [quote]I don't know about other techraiders, but that's the part I like the most.[/quote] Well then, it should be obvious to you why myself and others consistently come to the world community to denounce your unprovoked attacks upon our nations. [quote]I'd rather build my nation using other people's stuff. More fun that way. [/quote] As I said, that is your prerogative, but do not complain when people make these attacks public. It is only a natural result when you raid so many peaceful nations that some will make these grievances known to the world forum.

[quote name='Caleb279' timestamp='1281798083' post='2415710'] Gross violation? Wow...you tech raiding hippies make me laugh. But basically. Or you know...play the game right and get an alliance.[/quote] He attacked me for no reason other than personal gain, greed, and laziness. This is naked war profiteering at its worst. There is no "right" way to play, each nation should be able to choose its path. If Mr. Nixon and the other tech raiders choose to attack nations for no reason but profit, then that is their decision. But don't expect the victims of such raids to quietly accept it. [quote]Tech raids are here to stay. Thats the point...no matter who's fault it was, if he had been in an alliance there would be no problem. But he got rolled...shut up, grow a spine, and take it like a man. [/quote] No, I think you just want to get profits from a tech raid without hearing about the actual damage it causes. I was a sovereign nation and there was no legitimate reason for Nixon's attack. It can not be defended in any way. I am not asking for sympathy for my nation, I am asking that Mr. Nixon be condemed for his hostilities. I'm not sure what you mean by roll, as I have not really lost that much so far. He routed my army in the first attacks because there was no prior notice and he did a midnight blitz. But I guarantee you that I would win this war quite easily if he were to continue his attacks. I however am being rational and giving him a chance to end this war. I'm sure there are many in my place who would go with a full drawn out war, but I realize this would only be detrimental to both our nations. Why not simply have peace so we can all grow in whatever way we choose? It seems that you think that unaligned nations do not reserve any respect or recognition. But realize that each and every nation is sovereign, and should be treated as such. If you choose to tech raid, then that's your prerogative, but remember that there are people suffering due to these actions. If you don't like it, then respect indepdent nations' sovereignity and build your nation on your own instead of stealing and destroying someone else's hard work.

[quote name='Caleb279' timestamp='1281743072' post='2415036'] While it isn't his choice persay, it his fault. I laugh at your attempt of a comeback. Whats actually getting old is nations pissing and moaning about tech raiding. [/quote] Wait, what? It wasn't his choice to attack me? This all rested in the hands of Nixon. He had the option to either attack me or not. You have to imagine from my perspective it's pretty frustrating to see that my men were killed and property destroyed, as well as farmland seized. Any ruler in such a situation has a right to bring such a ridiculous action of attacking a country for no reason other than personal gain to the world stage. Am I supposed to just sit back and take the raid? Raiders are simply people who are too lazy to build their own nation so they steal and destroy other people's hard work. They are also spineless as they attack the nation in the lowest range which has the most tech and money. He didn't even declare that he was going to attack beforehand, so I wasn't left the option to defend myself. I had an army for sure but they are no match for an advanced nation. [quote name='agafaba' timestamp='1281744093' post='2415061'] Its not his fault he got raided, but it is his fault that his nation burns when he is raided. Being unaligned isnt the same as taunting every alliance, its more akin to not defending yourself properly. [/quote] It's impossible to "Defend yourself properly" because there is always a nation out there bigger than you that wants to steal your hard work. As I stated earlier, I wasn't testing the waters hoping a raider would attack, I made up a fake alliance name while I spent a couple of days looking around.

[quote name='Caleb279' timestamp='1281735993' post='2414882'] You must be new. Its their fault for not joining an alliance. Nations who raid for tech are smart, and the nations being raided should learn a lesson. All these "end tech raiding" threads get really old. [/quote] This would not have happened if Mr. Nixon did not intentionally declare war on me. I will admit that I could have chosen peace mode, but I decided not to. I really did not expect to come under attack, but the blame still lies totally with the aggressor for starting this. [quote='king puffington'] If you were to strike back at Mr. Nixon, I would highly suspect that others would get involved. Raiders really don't care whether you think they're gutless or not, sorry.[/quote] This doesn't answer my earlier question. I was under the impression that if the victim of a raid fights back and the raider whines about it to his alliance, he won't get much help militarily.

[quote name='Kzoppistan' timestamp='1281722155' post='2414540'] Yuri, I didn't get a chance to reply in detail yesterday since I was on the way out the door to lord over the people of my glorious nation and all that, so I'll jot down a few thoughts that may help you adjust to the surprise of being dragged onto the national stage due simply by holding onto the reins of your sovereignty. In response to your question above to a GOONS member, simply by being weaker than your attacker puts you at fault. Surely you are familiar with the term [i]Survival of the Fittest[/i], yes? It is a dog eat dog world out here and this sometimes comes as a shock to those newly appointed to their respective Heads of State. While we may have lived the comforts of "civilized" society amongst our brethren, we find that man's base instincts rule the international forum. It is this situation, immersed in world of predation, all nation leaders find themselves in. While some may lament this, finding it deplorable, I must disagree. While I do not use aggressive force against others without sufficient justification, such as in retaliation, nevertheless one principal should guide you, as it does me, in navigating this field of horrors: conflict makes you stronger. In spirit and in body. It is by being challenged that we grow and reach our potential. Living purely defensively is not enough, tending to your own affairs is not enough, you must ever reach to out-gun and out-maneuver those who are not your allies. Often, my friend, that is reason enough. You asked why the international community hasn't done something regarding such behavior as raiding, well, (divorcing those who deplore unprovoked violence from those who commit it) they have. They've banded together into various alliances. I didn't want to join one either when I first started my career. But no man is an island. So we must contend with the situation as best as we can. Frankly, in the end, joining an alliance was very beneficial for me. I learned the skills to effectively govern my lands, enjoyed the protection of being in a group, and received enormous sums of money. This can all be yours, too. As you seems to have a gift for the pen, should you persist in the administration of an alliance, you can gain much international fame and renown. You can command hundreds of loyal followers and your word will be taken as the ultimate truth. Be esteemed by allies and feared by your enemies. If you truly desire to walk a solitary path, there are options open to you, but I would suggest at least joining temporarily to gain the essential skills in warfare and trade that will allow you to better prosper. If you walk alone and face an attacker, here are some points to keep in mind. 1. Most raiders are in it for an easy buck. So you have two options available, accept that you have been raided and take their peace offer. The other option is to retaliated with extreme prejudice. Note that you have to have the upper hand in this situation. As you mentioned as one of your concerns, and rightfully so, many raiders are also sadists, so they will like it if you try to fight back, that will only heighten their taste for your blood. So you can't just fight back, especially if you are weaker than they, you have to completely and utterly crush them. You have to take what is theirs with unparalleled viciousness and drive them away from you fearing for their very lives. To do so means you have to have a substantial warchest so you can quickly leap ahead of them in ability once they attack. 2. To conserve your money and material, attack enough times to prove that they absolutely cannot match you and then offer them peace. They might be eager to take it. Alternatively, you might be able to clean them out and make a tidy profit, but as raiders have no honor, they might call in their allies and you'll be outnumbered. You have to show that trifling with you is just not worth it and you might be able to drive off your attackers. Unfortunately, that puts you back in the same situation, as there will always be someone bigger than you who wants what you've got. But, if you want live independently, you must become a master of war and a dealer of terror. 3. When dealing diplomatically, such as you are trying to do here, remember that everything revolves around [i]leverage[/i]. You have to possess something that makes others consider your offer. Whether that is something they want such as material goods, or some sort of mutually beneficial arrangement, or something they don't want such as the ability to undermine their strategic position or otherwise make their live's a living hell. You have to have [i]something[/i]. To speak of morals and honor isn't going to cut it. Honor doesn't put food on the table. It is an admirable quality, one that gives a definitive edge, but you can't win a hand with only that one card. Sympathy and appealing to higher virtues can be an effective lever on some, but not all. Many of the leaders on Bob are downright monsters and have no care for your morals or ethics. They only thing they respect is power. So how do you win against that using only flowery rhetoric? You cannot. You need something with a bit more substance. So when going into a diplomatic setting, keep this close at hand: leverage. Get some. Remember: you cannot live defensively, you must move to increase your security and protect your assets at all times. Even if you join an alliance, keep a keen eye for any angle that will improve your chances of success. Good luck. Your people are counting on you. (If you have any questions, feel free to send me a PM.) [/quote] This was very well written, but I must say that I am not at fault here. It is impossible to have complete defense of your nation as there is always someone who is stronger than you. My intention was not to be unaligned, I was simply independent while looking for an alliance. I agree that reasoning on the basis of logic and morality is not enough, but I have the resources to take back what Mr. Nixon stole from me and cause even further damage to his nation. But I will not do this unless he forces my hand because I realize that in the long run a war will be bad for both of our countries. Also, I've heard that when a tech raider decides to raid someone by himself, he is not to expect his alliance to bail him out of the situation if it gets tough. If that is true I don't think Mr. Nixon will call in other nations to help him, but if he does this will only further his cowardice. A midnight, unprovoked blitz was cowardly enough, but if he calls in others to help him then he is truly gutless.

[quote name='Ketther' timestamp='1281671601' post='2413838'] Why is this turning into a crusade against the Goons? This is starting to feel less like "Look raid! Hlep" and more like " GOONS " which is rather odd for a nation that's been created 12 days ago. If your nation is a reroll, please spare everyone the drama of "tech raiding is ruining CN". You should have known better. [/quote] OOC: Like LucasSnow said, you seem to be forgetting this is an IC forum. I do not like the fact that I am being raided, and do not like raiding in general. Therefore I have a right to dislike the goons. I'm not a reroll, just someone who has been attacked for no reason by an alliance with which I had no previous quarell. Also, I have read the history of CN, and I can't say that too much of what GOONS has done is good! For example look what they did to Fark when they joined. [quote name='nippy' timestamp='1281673373' post='2413894'] There was your second mistake. You basically did the equivalent of taking out a full page ad in a newspaper to not only get our attention but the attention of everybody that reads this forum. If you were truly concerned about having our alliance assist you in obtaining peace in any way, you would have approached us directly. Instead, you created an opinion poll and flailed about dramatically, attempting to shine a negative light on our alliance (as if we need [i]another[/i] one of those XD). [/quote] I did this to bring it to the attention of the international community, hoping that people would see this in a bad light. Instead I'm somehow at fault because my military wasn't maxed out, and I do see people every now and then trying to stop tech raiding. This is just another incident to show the evil that is tech raiding. Also, I believe that one of my friends from Nemesis attempted to talk to you guys but you essentially said that even though you protect Mr. Nixon you are not responsible for his actions. But I do consider you responsible, as you are offering him protection and possible membership. What he is doing to me is by extension what GOONS is doing to me, and that is killing my men and destroying my nation for no reason except for personal gain. [quote name='Alfred von Tirpitz' timestamp='1281676092' post='2413981'] You also put a neon sign on your head saying "Easy Tech Raids : Come and get it boys"[/quote] Mr. Nixon should actually be very happy I didn't counterattack. I was devoting my resources to nation growth, but I have much that can be diverted to expand my military and cause plenty of damage to Mr. Nixon. So no, I don't think that someone would have an easy time raiding me. [quote]If you were aware of probable tech raids, evidenced by your dummy AA move, you could have gone to Peace Mode, regardless of what some may tell you, it is a perfectly legitimate tactic.[/quote] I chose not to because of the economic impact on my nation. I was only planning to stay unaligned for a few days while I was looking for an alliance. I did not intend to stick it out like some do and contantly fight tech raiders. [quote]That you are raided, no doubt is a cause of sorrow and grief to you. Try to get peace from the current raider and then proceed to hippy, till such time as you can find an alliance that would accept you. You could try some of the following: The Democratic Order GPA Cult of Justitia GOONS - if you would like to learn how to raid \m/ [would not advise this one for srs since you will most likely not fit in] The one that HeroofTime fella is in GATO the options are limitless. Its a whole new world out there!!!! [/quote] I have already chosen to join Nemesis, hopefully they will accept me. Thank you for the advice though.

[quote name='Mofeta' timestamp='1281647833' post='2413237'] Again, this guy is not in our alliance. We can't discuss peace on his behalf; the only jurisdiction we have over Stupid Newbie is that we protect them from outside attacks. My personal suggestion is to ask him for peace personally, and if he doesn't agree to it fight back and hope he doesn't take the rest of your money. [/quote] [quote name='Mofeta' timestamp='1281647833' post='2413237'] Again, this guy is not in our alliance. We can't discuss peace on his behalf; the only jurisdiction we have over Stupid Newbie is that we protect them from outside attacks. My personal suggestion is to ask him for peace personally, and if he doesn't agree to it fight back and hope he doesn't take the rest of your money. [/quote] So you are willing to protect these people, but not willing to endorse their actions? What type of diplomatic loophole is this? These attacks are entirely unjustified. If Mr. Nixon refuses to withdraw, then a long and costly war will follow. I have built up my military (with my own money, not the money allocated to me from generous nations via foreign aid) if he is foolish enough to attack me. I came here seeking peace with GOONS, as I have no quarell with your alliance. I'm not sure how Mr. Nixon justified this invasion, but it appears to me it was done for personal gain. If that is the case, then I would suggest that he declare peace immediately and take off with what little he has taken. Otherwise I will unleash a powerful, brave counterattack to inflict even more damage than what was done to me. I am a patient man, and realize that peace will be mutually beneficial between our nations. If GOONS is seriously interested in taking Mr. Nixon into their alliance, I submit that they teach their members when to pull out and when to stay in. Surely a costly 7 day war that stunts growth will result in nothing good for Amerikka. I realize that GOONS doesn't endorse his actions, but for his benefit, I suggest that you let him know peace is the wisest option here. I am ready to move on into a new alliance, Nemesis, and want this situation to be over with. But if rudeness and callousnses are the traits of Mr. Nixon, and through that extention GOONS (because GOONS shows interest in accepting him) then there will be a long and costly war. I do not wish to drain my resources further, but I will not sit back while my men are killed for no reason.

[quote name='terveis' timestamp='1281645157' post='2413169'] I feel sorry for all the men your country have lost because of this attack. Terkkulas people mourn with you, your people and the families of those who have been killed. [/quote] Star City appreciates your condolences. GOONS, I would like to discuss the peace that I have laid out on the table.

[quote name='nippy' timestamp='1281643777' post='2413137'] If you fail to take precautions against attacks, you're going to get attacked. There's no one to blame but yourself. [/quote] I'm not sure how I'm at fault by tending to my nation's affairs. I simply ask for peace from the GOONS so I can move on with my nation building. I'm not a threat to your interests or soveireignty.

[quote name='Kzoppistan' timestamp='1281642290' post='2413082'] Didn't vote for this reason: Law of the Jungle. There is no international court and only a very loose and often hotly debated set of moral/ethical behaviors. At the lowest level it's like this, if you can't extract reps by force or strategy then you don't deserve them. Get some friends, or appeal to the alliance they are a member of and they *might* take mercy on you and throw you a bone, or take the money back by force, beg for aid on the forum here, or think up something no one has done before to extract your money/revenge. Otherwise give it up. Good luck. Here, I'm sending some aid your way. Don't piss it away by getting attacked by someone stronger than you. Join an alliance or make your own or otherwise accept the fact that those who wander without protection will travel the path of constant war. [/quote] I realize that those who wish to be independent suffer the threat of constant war, but I wasn't planning on staying independent for long. I'm also curious as to why such a practice as this is allowed by the international community. If I may use an OOC reference, a country in "real life" can't just go around attacking small countries with no allies or otherwise they'd face serious consequences from the UN. However, I appreciate your aid and promise that I will not use it for war purposes. It shall be used to rebuild my nation after Mr. Nixon agrees to peace. I just want the war to end.

[quote name='Mofeta' timestamp='1281642053' post='2413070'] Stupid Newbie is GOONS' applicant AA. So while Richard Nixon is not a goon yet, he is certainly making a good case for himself. [/quote] Ah, then you can speak for his actions, for surely an alliance must take responsibility for the members it accepts, or is preparing to accept. I will therefore consider Mr. Nixon's attack on my country as a GOONS endorsed attack on my country. Explain to me why GOONS has attacked my nation. I have done nothing to provoke your alliance. We are a peaceful nation trying to grow normally, and do not wish for war.

[quote name='lonewolfe2015' timestamp='1281638906' post='2412989'] We told you that trying to survive on your own isn't gonna work. Join someone who will defend you... [/quote] I was looking for a suitable alliance. I even made up a fake alliance name to stay off the search lists. Can't I go a couple days independent while trying to find another alliance? [quote name='Poyplemonkeys' timestamp='1281639337' post='2413000'] This is probably the reason for his attack. Pretty tidy profit level at your size. Hit him back, harder than he hit you. Take your money and tech back from him by force.[/quote] I'm afraid it's not as simple as that. If I counterattack without first discussing, then this will escalate into a long drawn out war which will end up costing me hundreds of thousands and suffering much more than I already have. Nation leaders must be rational when it comes to war, otherwise the cost could be much greater. [quote]inb4 horrible evil GOONS thread. [/quote] I have no quarrell with the goons, though I do not like the practice of destroying people's hard work for amusement or personal gain. The alliance at fault here is Stupid Newbie, and they are the ones I'm adressing this to. And for those who voted no, please explain. I'd like to hear your reasoning.

I come to the world stage today to speak on behalf of my country, Star City. We are a new nation at only 12 days old. We have entered into one major alliance but found that it was not best for us. Another smaller alliance asked for our assistance, which we gave, but unfortunately it disbanded. Unfortunately, transition periods between alliances can leave a nation quite vulnerable to warmongers seeking to destroy one's hard work. The warmonger in question here is the nation of Amerikka, led by a Mr. Richard Nixon. He has engaged our meager defense forces four times in the past two days. Our men fought bravely for their country, but in the end the enemy's numbers were superior, his element of surprise daunting, and his attack without provocation or mercy. Star City has never had a quarrel with Amerikka, nor in fact any nation. We have one goal in mind, that is to expand our technology, improve the daily lives of our citizens, and one day begin a space program. We entered into quite a profitable tech deal with a much larger nation, resulting in millions of dollars that we could use for our growth. I am sad to say that now a portion of this surplus now must be spent defending my nation. Even worse, I owned 50 technology levels that were guaranteed to the larger nation in the tech deal agreement with me. Mr. Nixon decided to steal 10 of those levels for himself. Mr. Nixon, I must ask, why have you decided to attack my nation without mercy or provocation? I have done nothing to upset you or your alliance from which you hail "Stupid Newbie". Most rulers in this stage would either panic, or go crazy with revenge, spending ridiculous amounts of money and causing even more damage to the attacking nation. I have however, acted in the only way a gentleman should in such a situation where he is attacked in a cowardly midnight blitz. I simply ask that you declare peace and explain why this was done. If Mr. Nixon were a true, noble gentleman (which I sincerely doubt, for what noble ruler would launch an invasion on a country he has no previous dispute with) then he would be kind enough to repay the damage that was done to me: 181 soldiers 6 miles of land 21.282 infrastructure 1,490,109.29 money As you can see I suffered greatly of this attack. Highways have been destroyed, brave soldiers killed, farmland catpured, and even more grievous acts which I shall not mention here. I would very much appreciate, however I will not demand, that these losses be reimubursed. Hopefuly the international community will see what Mr. Nixon has done, and condemn him as well as his alliance for endorsing these cold-blooded attacks.

We don't really know what we will find there when we investigate. We just have to wait and find out, because the only thing we have to go off of is the controversial martian meteorite. People have been studying and debating that for 14 years with no clear answer. Further investigation at fossil sites will be necessary to truly find out.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38494792/ns/technology_and_science How exciting! We all know that billions of years ago Mars may have had an environment that could support life. The meteorite that was found in Antartica, presumably from Mars, could possibly contain evidence of life. If a probe is launched to Nili Fossae we may be able to finally confirm whether life existed on Mars.

While I admit this is mainly being done to break the record and get some publicity for Red Bull's extreme sports campaign there is something that can be gained from this. Spacecraft orbit a lot higher than that, but if they have issues, then it could descend to a safe enough distance for the astronauts onboard to leave the ship. The reason it's not being sponsored by NASA is because as we've seen in the past, they really don't have any type of discussions or provisions for rescue missions out in space. They pretty much give the people on board one chance to get things right, if not they're dead or they narrowly escape with the help of mission control like the Apollo 13 mission. The astronauts onboard Columbia could've been rescued. The engineers knew that some damage had been done to the heat shield, but the people in charge decided to not really look into it because there "wasn't much we can do". There could've been a space walk to repair the damaged part, or Atlantis could've been launched on a risky rescue mission. But that is the topic of another debate. As it stands, it's just pretty cool to see someone jumping for 120,000 feet.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn18427-space-diver-to-attempt-first-supersonic-freefall.html This is amazing. He's going to reach supersonic speeds on his way down. From 120,000 feet you can see the Earth and the space around. Not only is this an exciting attempt to break the world record for the highest jump (31 km), this is also a bit of data to see if astronauts can bail out of a spacecraft if they're in danger. Here's a video of the record:

The Guardians of Origin is a pretty new, small alliance at 5 members. Right now we're just concentrated on growing our alliance. We won't be getting involved in any type of pointless wars. You can join and grow at your own pace, and we are situated on the black team. If you're interested come by our website: http://tgo-cn.cacwebstudios.com/index.php?act=idx

I have marble and oil. Sign me up.

I think that overall this was a little pessimistic. There could be thousands of intelligent civilizations in the stars but don't use radio or TV equipment to communicate with eachother. Maybe these civilizations are intelligent but have no interest aside from maintaining their own civilization on their own world. Since the only way we could determine if there was/is another civilization out there is by radio contact, there really is no way to know how many are out there. I think that it would be prety low though, considering that of the millions of species on Earth only one is "intelligent" (but there are a few others which communicate with eachother verbally and use tools). I think the prospect of life beyond Earth is pretty likely. We see life living in the most extreme environments on Earth, so what's to say there aren't aquatic life forms living beneath the surface of Europa? Or methane based life living in the thick atmosphere of Titan? There's also the possibiliy of fossils on Mars of life that could have existed there billions of years ago. These three worlds are the most likely to contain life in our solar system, so the best place to start looking would be there. Do not be discouraged by the fact that we have found hundreds of gas giants but only one exoplanet in the habitable zone- this is just a sampling bias, it's a lot easier for astronomers to detect these huge planets than it is for them to find one the size of Earth. Over time our technology will develop where we can actually view exoplanets in high detail. The possibility of manned interstellar travel is there too, though that is quite far off from now, as we haven't even been to another planet yet. As long as humans devote more of our resources to space exploration and technological advancement, I firmly believe we will discover life elsewhere within the next 30 years. The fact of the matter is that our technology to detect alien life is pretty weak right now, so the only correct answer to alien civilizations and extraterrestrial life is simply, "We don't know". Life here on Earth could have just been a miraculous fluke, or it could be pretty common throughout the galaxy. But the fact that there are billions of stars in our galaxy, and the fact that life is in extreme abundance here on Earth, means that it could happen elsewhere. It's only a matter of time I think until we find life beyond Earth.

I'm willing to take any trade circle I can get. Sign me up for marble and oil. EDIT: Nevermind, I changed my team color.

This is a good circle with a combination of good BRs and NRs. This circle is long term, I want it to stay around as long as possible. Post in this topic or PM me if you want to join the circle. It's first come first serve so post quick! The following resources are needed: Aluminum- Fish- Gold- Iron- Lead- Lumber- Marble- Yuri Armstrong Oil- Yuri Armstrong Rubber- Water- BRs: Asphalt Construction Microchips Scholars Effects: Initial infrastructure cost: -32.5% Soldier increase: 32% Nuclear Weapons cost decrease: -20% Infrastructure upkeep: -22.2% Soldier cost decrease: $-6 Nuclear Weapons upkeep decrease: -20% Population increase: 8% Soldier upkeep cost: $-0.5 Frigate purchase cost decrease: -10% Citizen income increase: $6 Tank cost decrease: -8% Frigate upkeep cost decrease: -38% Population happiness increase: 3.5 Tank upkeep cost: -17% Destroyer purchase cost decrease: -10% Initial land cost: -14.5% Aircraft cost decrease: -7.8% Destroyer upkeep cost decrease: -38% Purchase land area increase: 20% Aircraft upkeep cost decrease: -25% Submarine purchase cost decrease: -10% Aircraft limit increase: 10 units Submarine upkeep cost decrease: -38% Technology cost decrease: -13% Cruise Missile cost decrease: -20% Aircraft carrier purchase cost decrease: -18% Environment: +1 Cruise Missile upkeep cost decrease: -20% Aircraft Carrier upkeep cost decrease: -38% Environment penalty reduction: -50% Other navy upkeep cost decrease: -28%

The history of this game is a lot clearer for me now. thanks.