Revolutionary Tool Kit

Day 1,179, 04:24 • Published in USA USA • by Silas Soule
Revolutionary Tools

The debate between advocates of the political module and their opponents rolls on like a river. Doing my part to help stir the pot, here is a handy, context-free, fill-in-the-cause guide to causing political trouble in eRepublik.


Disclaimer: This guide is not intended to promote any particular revolutionary movement. It is a general-purpose guide provided as a public service.


Use it only for good!






1. e-Saloons and Coffee Houses.


There is nothing more important to fomenting a sense of unrest than having a open-door space where people can speak their minds freely. The eRep equivalent of a saloon or a coffee-house is a chat channel, an unmoderated off-game forum, a social networking site, or the comment section of articles. Secret meetings of consipirators are great, but for stoking fires there's nothing quite like public agitation in a casual, open atmosphere.



2. The Spoken and Written Word.


Remember the "Committees of Correspondence" that helped launch the (RL) American Revolution? Well, you should. Talking one-on-one, sending messages, writing articles -- the longer, the better -- is a time-honored way of inculcating revolutionary ideas into people's minds and it musn't be neglected.



3. Momentum.


Sports fans will understand this one intuitively. The faster things develop, the better the chance for maximum e-violence and social upset. The Man will always try to slow down the pace of events. Keep moving!



4. Icons.


It is important to paint of picture of what crimes will be avenged / righted by the revolution and/or what bright, cheery future will be brought about by the revolt. Words are great and necessary, but there's nothing quite like an iconic image, especially if it has lots of color and an audio soundtrack.



5. Typecast foes.


A revolution needs enemies that can easily be identified and despised. It's not enough to fight against an abstraction like, say, lack of freedom. It should be personified as some persona -- either an actual player or a made-up one -- so that the mob has someone they can burn in effigy. Also, remember to cast the foe as totally without any redeeming qualities whatsoever: they're not juist "elitists", they're barbarians!



6. The Munchies.


At the end of the day, all revolutions are about hunger -- for something. Hammer home the problem with lack of (whatever) or the high price of (whatever).



7. Tumult.


No revolution is ever about just one thing. It's a mix of motivations, different people rebelling for different reasons, and seldom goes according to anyone's plan. Embrace the chaos and bring on the ruckus.



8. Ease of Use.


Don't put huge demands on the revolutionary masses. Good choreography is a must. Make it easy to show your support for the Revolution. If players have to, say, buy a bunch of moving tickets or fill out some complicated google doc, they're gonna get bored.



9. Anthems and Slogans.


No revolution worth its salt lacks inspiring songs, snappy slogans and clever quips. The best kind of revolution is one that laughs its opponents out of power while the masses rock out. And if you don't have a song to sing, what's the point of seizing power anyway?



10. Pluck.


More important than anything else is utter self-confidence -- typically mis-placed -- in the idea that "this time it will be different". There is no gambit or technique that can take the place of daring. Revolution results from an act of will, not a carefully constructed plan.