I can’t help but follow in spite of going insane

for I know you’ll swallow the whole of my pain.

---

Hey Man, Nice Shot:

General Assembly, Rabanast, Burmessia
Kiast β, Kiast System, Nilgaard Sector
43 ABY

The general assembly of the Burmessian Republic had gathered, a multitude of voices in an uproar over the recent assassination of the Prime Minister in his apartment. Speculation of political plots, anger over unfulfilled agendas, and concerns as the minority parties squabbled with the majority party over the succession of a new Prime Minister. The majority proposed an unpopular candidate, a warhawk who assumed the primary aggressor behind the assassination had been the Vatali Empire, the speculative evidence.

”Celevon Werd’a.”

“Facial recognition and docking records show that the Empress' lover, Celevon Werd’a, and a vessel registered to her Highness, had been in our system since just before the assassination, and fled shortly after.” A voice had chimed up over the din, her calculating tone cold, cutting through the chaos with surgical precision.

“Preposterous, we all know that Kaltani’s husband died during the incursion to our system years ago…” A burly Mon Calamari shouted as he pounded his chest.

“Yes, her husband, that’s not to say she isn’t courting another, one of the selfsame rag-tag militia who saved their little 'Empire' from the extra-solar threat and who are now demanding we turn over our asylum seekers for supposed high treason, without evidence.” The woman interjected as she motioned to the holotank in the center of the room, the map of the Kiast System and the surrounding nebula replaced with various images and video files of Kaltani and Celevon, throughout various places, during both social and private events.

“Information Services have gathered this over several years of monitoring the Royal Family. The notable absence of Kaltani’s daughter, Anaya, after being taken into custody by the Jedi is a source of concern; however, her son Vosen is a threat. A Lieutenant Commander within their Combined Fleet, he has begun pursuing a career in politics, wielding the power and influence garnered through his service, and he intends to land here on an extradition bid for the Vauzem nobles we’ve granted asylum.”

Opium of the People:

Voraskel Palace, Conclave Chambers, Kiast
Kiast System, Nilgaard Sector
43 ABY

“An extradition warrant for Celevon Werd’a has been issued to us from the Burmessian Republic, Empress.” A Representative for House Etlina spoke out and a holotank in the middle of the room with their words, the holographic display emblazoned with the warrant and a picture of Celevon obtained by the Burmessian Port Authority.

“Does House Sunrider intend to deliver the errant Odanite to their request?” The Empress questioned.

A small voice spoke up, the Mandalorian Kushiban who represented House Sunrider following Tierra Suha’sen’s departure.

“Your Highness, Celevon is only connected to Sunrider through our standing obligations with the Templar Jensaarai. While previously he worked hand-in-hand with our House, he has taken leave for other… interests.” Asani paused at the final word.

The Kushiban was forced into her least favorite game, politics. A former Chapter Master of the Templar Jensaarai herself, she was more than aware that she could call a moot to ask for the wayward man’s recall, but something about this entire situation sat uneasily with the lagomorph as she reviewed the warrant and the recorded footage on her own dataslate.

Barad Ghalor was the next to speak.

“What of the people? They speak of war and demand we return aggression against the Republic for hosting the traitors after their escapade on Quermia. I believe they may be correct, even if I would rather peace, the Royal Military may need to stock up on arms to combat an upcoming threat, Highness.” He asked, focusing on the cost of the conflict, or rather, how it lined House Ghalor’s pockets.

“Are you asking with the people’s interest, or checking your credit accounts?” An Echani spoke up from beside the Representative of House Hoth.

Ryuu Suoh, an ascetic man from a self-made noble family, was quick to cut the conversation to its core, before Syrena Valkar raised her hand.

“I think my compatriot means to ask, are we sure the people can afford another conflict so soon following the Quermian Conflict? While we only deployed the First and Third Fleets for the conflict, we’ve spent a large amount of our time and resources on repairing the damages, both physical and diplomatic, done by the Vauzem. Is House Ghalor willing to help shoulder some of these costs moving forward? More so, are they willing to help pay for a secondary conflict if we give into the people’s whims of jumping into a secondary conflict of which the Burmessian Republic is only tangentially aware of the details?”

Barad balked, almost gagging at the prospect of shouldering the debt of the wars and rehabilitation.

“Yes, quite. Maybe you have a point, Lady Valkar.”

“Do the people believe war is the correct choice, or do they follow the whims of…”

“The people will follow wherever I tell them to go. They have learned that the Royal family leads them true, and their ultimate faith is in me,” Kaltani began, cutting Syrena off mid-sentence, “and that is all that is important. Their faith will serve us.”

Let There Be Fire:

I’m easily a week later than I wanted to be.

We’ve begun our second Campaign, Weight of the World, and we’ve already passed through the first week. Ope. Thanks to Seals and our lovely QUAs/AEDs for boosting the signal and getting the word out for the first week, we’ve got some decent participation. There’s a lot to unpack here, so I’m going to break it all down for you guys.

---

The Setup:

• Stage One Questionnaire:

Each Phase of Weight of the World is going to have a narrative branch, with an attributed Questionnaire. The purpose of these questionnaires is to decide the path not only for the Storyline, but Odan-Urr going forward. Completing this questionnaire and completing at least 1 bin in the competitions for the phase makes your vote count. Each Bin you submit to, not competition, gives you an additional vote.

A few of the biggest questions we’ve received for years now, ever since our tenuous acceptance into The Brotherhood, have been, “What is Clan Odan-Urr’s Purpose?” and “What Defines Us?” This campaign aims to help tackle those questions by putting one of our biggest safety nets into question: The Vatali Empire.

After we fled New Tython, we were welcomed into a system with its own governance as refugees, drifters, and rebels against a larger force. We’ve leaned on the fence provided by the Nebula surrounding Kiast’s binary star system as a deterrent against most threats, and helped deal with threats to our hosts. They acted as a silent backdrop which, even during our narratives for the Consular Conclave and Guardian Corps., provided us with a stable hook narratively for why events mattered outside of the Temple, why they affected the Rebels, just how the populace was affected by what we did.

Now the question comes: “Are we going to keep being dragged into their conflicts, and if so, what kind of role will we take?” The Quermian Conflict was a precursor, dealing with the remnants of an old enemy. Returning to a conflict many of us already knew, but now it’s sparking something else, and you have to decide just what Odan-Urr is going to do in the emergence of this new conflict.

---

The Narrative (Abridged):

Quermia was a predecessor to it all, and even before that, the Vauzem plot to overthrow the Vatali Empire during the Vatali Unsettled conflict years ago. Following the Quermian Conflict, as the Vauzem Separatists fled, one ship was forced into emergency shutdown in Kiast, where it listed into orbit of Kiast β, otherwise known as the territory of the Burmessian Republic (the solar neighbors of our own Vatali Empire in Orbit of Kiast Α). Aboard this vessel were nobles and officers from the Vauzem Dominion, who, unlike the rest of their crew, were afforded asylum by the Republic.

The Vatali Empire seeks the extradition of these criminals, through any means, which sparked a series of fierce debates between the Empress and the Prime Minister of the Republic.

Under mysterious circumstances, the Prime Minister was assassinated. The Republic blames Celevon Werd’a for the assassination.

---

The Competitions:

I want these to be quick and easy each phase, and for us to have a bit of room to compensate and adjust for what you guys vote for. As such each phase will be done with the Art, Gaming, and Miscellaneous Competitions being done in 3 weekly batches, while the Fiction and Roleplay will be done for the full three weeks. The last week will give Jack and me some time to wrap up the grading, adjust our pre-mades based on what you guys voted for, and time to write the fiction for the next phase, as well as punch out the next Questionnaire.

Keeping these competitions simple and accessible is especially important to me as we will be coinciding with the ongoing Seasons (which share a similar ease of entry plan) and other events throughout the year. Remember, these competitions are designed to be **if* you can participate, and not designed for maximum participation.* Enjoy anything, or everything, at your pace and without pressure.

Scimitar of Lord Hoth:

• July
• Year-to-Date

We’ve got some serious contention on the board this month and a major upset brewing for the year with Seals & Co. charging after Turel and Edgar’s top scorer posts. I’d also like to point out that in July, from the 61 current members of Odan-Urr, 39 of you have taken part in something over the last month, from the beginning of the year to the start of the month, 46 of you have taken part in something.

Further, over the last year, we’ve had a total of 74 Odanites, current or former, who have either joined us in some manner or were given an award. Undoubtedly, this has been a great year for us, and I’d love to see us continue our journey onward.

Promotions:

• Volant was promoted to Novitate 3!
• Dolot was promoted to Equite 1!
• Corpzen was promoted to Novitiate 3!
• Zen was promoted to Journeyman 1, then again to Journeyman 2!
• Vanik was promoted to Journeyman 1!

News Corner!:

• Regent Policy Change: Salaries - Wherein Thran helps break the Council’s budget just a little bit more.
• HM#17: Something Wiki This Way Comes - Cycle 2 is ending, we’re getting to work, go make trivia. Wait… I got a Wiki Job?
• Let’s Talk about Seasonal Rewards - Arch breaks down the Seasonal Rewards and then reminds us we don’t have to do everything.
• [EMS] PraeTOR Report#1: Time to Yap - Member interviews for the Newsletter.
• Voice Report #24 - LOREFEST!
• A bit of a change - A Change in the House of Ood
• Wombat Master Report #5 - TOURNAMENT ARC!

Closing Thoughts from the CON:

Noesis:

Referring to the act of thinking, perceiving, or experiencing, often in the study of how we relate to our consciousness from a first-person point of view. As I’ve been in the hot seat as Consul of Odan-Urr I’ve been focused more and more on how to deliver an experience for each of you derived from this concept. To understand who, what, and why both our characters and our clan interact and exist within the structures we are surrounded by. Not just from the point of view of “I chose to be here” but narratively, systematically, and functionally.

While I understand that there is a functional chunk of our membership as of late who are here largely to game with others and have little-to-no investment in our overarching narrative (don’t worry, I’ll nab you one day), the plan is that we make and keep things accessible, easy to digest, and comprehensive, with easy ways for our members to feed into our different narrative components and subunits.

That business aside for now, I want to say thank you for everything you’ve done, Odanites. For your continuous activity, taking part in everything we put forward, both at the Clan and Club level, and being a continuous font of support, community, and positive vibes.

Ever onwards, Odan-Urr!