VIDEO: @LOKIOFASGARD (with @beloved)

[selfimage]

Well, hello!

[ it's Loki, decked out in his civvies, green hoodie and fingerless gloves, working his magitek like he's trying to take a selfie. behind him is the backdrop of the middle levels, dimly lit in the dreary evening. there's a flash of a half smile to Team Ophelia, and when he speaks again it's in a wistful, casual tone. ]

It seems that we've landed ourselves a doozy, hm? The poor souls in Rost are are ready for a little revolution, but haven't a solid plan for the rest. [ he makes vague, spread-finger gesture, and his expression says that he's excited about the prospect of an uprooting. ] But like every ready and willing revolution, there should—hm, well ... probably be some longer term changes following it, right?

It's not exactly in the mission specs, which is wringing out the corruption and all ... nor is solidity my specialty, buu-uu-ut!

[ the camera angle changes, as Ahad reaches into the frame and adjusts Loki's arm. they've managed to squish together so that they're both easily viewable, from Loki's magitek. ]

But it would be irresponsible, to leave without ensuring that they have a plan for for governance post-mission. While the ultimate solution should be left up to the people of Drakstaden, [ he says, as if this is a foregone conclusion that requires no debate, ] perhaps we could offer suggestions? What has been successful, in your own worlds?

[ Loki's head is half obscured by the video while he changes the angle to put a pair of wiggly rabbit ears behind Ahad's head. ] That means the suggestion box is open! Let's get a team effort, hm?


[ Note: there will be Loki & Ahad out! they might be nosy in eachother's threads. feel free to thread hop if that's a thing you wanna do!! we encourage it. ]

Comments

god allyson I'm so sorry monologuing forever

[evenslimmer]

[ Scott is not here to smear his personal baggage all over a public forum like some hot-headed shounen protagonist. ]

I think shutting down the propaganda and surveillance networks should be our first priority, and getting real information into the hands of the public should be second. We'll have a better chance of accomplishing effective change if we can make them aware of the extent to which they've been disadvantaged, and if we can get them talking, we can expand our options for what to do next. Additionally, we should try to find out what happened to the previously arrested dissidents and see if they're still alive somewhere. Right now we're dealing with a small faction of rebels. Maybe that faction isn't the best choice to lead after we remove the prime minister and his cronies, so expanding the options would be helpful there.

The problem would be accomplishing this while mitigating the possibility of a military crackdown in response. I would expect them to try to tighten or regain their control through force. Talking about coups and information warfare is one thing, but I don't have a viable solution at the moment for what to do about the Vakdir. They're players in this situation too.

[dailydouble]

There is another problem. Even after ending the propaganda, there is a strong possibility that the public may believe we bring more of the same.

[ Everything else sounds very logical and thought out. It's still a pleasant surprise. ]

[evenslimmer]

I know.

[ It's on Scott's list of logistical problems he hasn't any viable solutions to just yet. At least, viable from his perspective. ]

If this were your city, and you had someone like Rost come to you, telling you the government had its boot to the back of your neck...would you believe them?

[dailydouble]

That entirely depends on factors that are difficult to predict.

[ He'll sigh here. ] Even so, it may come down to who benefits most from the current system. Those of the lowest levels may already be aware, but feel there is no possibility of fighting. The highest levels may not want to know what their government is doing. It's difficult to predict.

[evenslimmer]

We don't know any of the players intimately enough to be able to fully predict what might happen. I'm sure there's probably a number of small, subtle moves we could make to put our thumb on the scale and tip things in a new direction, but I don't think I could even begin to tell you what they are.

[ Which leaves them acting as a blunt instrument, rather than a scalpel. Scott doesn't feel very comfortable about that right now. ]

How much do you think the upper class outside of the prime minister's inner circle are really benefiting from this? If he's holding their livelihoods ransom or blackmailing them, they might be open to turning on him at the first sign of blood in the water.

[dailydouble]

Certain members of the upper class waiting to rebel is as likely as anything else here. If it appears that the prime minister is failing, he will be abandoned by those he holds in thrall.

[ What Ahad doesn't say is that he'll likely be abandoned by those looking to become the next prime minister and power-brokers, as well. The difficulty always lies in trying not to simply replicate the same system. ]

[evenslimmer]

[ He doesn't need to say it. Scott can think it. He's not the paranoid plotter he's destined to become, but he's not naive, either. ]

It would be good to have a plan in place for convincing them that a regime-change that favors the rest of the city favors them too. Something better than an appeal to straight logic, because like it or not, that rarely works.

[ A hesitation, and then— ]

It feels like to do this well, we'd need a plan with more moving parts than we might be able to coordinate. [ As they are, right now, as a team. ] But the simplest conceivable solutions definitely won't effectively solve the problem.

[dailydouble]

We may not have the time for anything much beyond the simplest conceivable solution. Once our objective is reached, we'll be limited in how long we can remain.