Discussions erupted over the weekend regarding the recent decision to limit recruiting threads and unsolicited recruiting messages in the Metaverse. This topic has been debated in the past but never to this extreme. A decision to form a formal method of recruiting resulted in a mandate which instructed empires as to how and where recruitment should occur. Unfortunately, something got lost in the translation. Many felt the new mandate went too far in limiting the recruiting efforts of empires. Debates were waged and tempers flared. After things settled down a bit, the mandate was more fully explained and feelings were eased a bit. A general overview of the recruiting mandate is:

Whether this policy is too strict or not, recruiting certainly should be limited. It is up to individual empires to police their overlords as to the observance of this policy. Let ethics be your guide.

Empire Overview

The Fellowship of the Ring empire is trying to climb back to the top after their recent decline. Energized by several new recruits and the strong gaming from several of their overlords, the Fellowship has moved back within about 500,000 points of first place Special Forces. They are closely followed by the European Alliance, who now find themselves comfortably ahead of fourth place Jedi Republic. Recent inactivity on the farms have dropped Mid-Western Confederation to fifth place and in danger of attack by Realms Beyond. The Canadian Star Federation also has undergone a recent lull in activity but still find themselves within reach of Realms Beyond. However, they still have a precarious lead over eighth place ANZAC Imperium and should be aware of the Aussie invasion. Rounding out the Top 10 is the pirates of G.R.O.S.S. and the Aldarian Empire, who are currently engaged in close combat with less than 200,000 points separating the two powers.

Recruiting efforts seem to be paying of for newcomer Galactic Guardians, who now have four members and stand in 14th place. They are trying to overtake the almost lifeless Apolyton.

Where's The Evil?

The Evil Empire has been on a steady decline and the question must be asked, what is going on? Several of their top overlords have defected and the rest are contemplating what to do. There are reports that even more are considering defecting. What could have happened in the Evil Empire to cause such a drastic drop in support? There appears to be no clear answer. It is truly sad to see the fall of such an entertaining empire. It is hoped HairyTheTaco and company can reverse this slide and return to their former glory of evil.

Top Scorers

As unbelievable as it may seem, the Top 17 players in the Metaverse now have over 400,000 points. In order to break into the Top 25, a player needs around 335,000 points and just to make it into the Top 50, an overlord needs more than 190,000 points! Though these numbers seem astronomical, all that is needed to do well in Galactic Civilizations is dedication and effort. With a steady increase in the learning curve, players can move up in difficulty which leads to higher scores. Also, many of the Top 50 are now inactive and will steadily drop in the rankings leaving room at the top for more and more active players. Though Maso players are generally ranked highly, non-Maso players can still do well in the Metaverse by playing well and playing often. The key is to not give up!

Another way of looking at things is not as individual scores but as a greater vision. Joining an empire gives players a much greater effect with their scoring. Even small submissions of 3,000-5,000 points can help an empire. If a player is concerned that he will never reach "the Top 50", all he or she needs to do is play as part of a team. Team contributions are generally recognized as highly or possibly higher than individual acheivements. So, if you're ranked outside of the Top 100, don't get depressed! Join an empire and make your contributions count!

The Weekly Spotlight Empire

The return of the WSE feature brings to you the Diplomats Empire. Founded originally by a former Evil Empire overlord, the Diplomats empire now finds itself in the Top 15 and firmly entrenched in Metaverse politics. Emperor Spellforce gained prominence in the Metaverse by forming the Unofficial Mods Site, a website dedicated to bringing players great game mods to enhance their playing experience. After a promotion from Stardock to Prime Minister for taking over the official Library site for mods, Spellforce founded the Diplomats and created their Empire Website. Upon seeing a need for a separate and neutral meeting ground for Metaverse citizens, the Diplomats then formed The Senate Halls, a new forum for discussion.

The Diplomats are quite an interesting bunch and very friendly. Their members are welcomed everywhere they go and they always have something interesting to add to a conversation. If you are drawn to a diplomatic means to an end and wish membership in their empire, visit their Empire Consulate where you can join their group.