Monarchs

[The Moon]

It seems that whenever somebody gets voted into Monarch, they have a high chance of becoming power crazed.

I have had only two good Monarchs in my entire Utopian career, compared with a dozen or more bad ones.

I believe a Monarch should use Mass Messages/Kingdom Forum/IRC to consult everyone in the Kingdom about what is to be done and then act upon the opinion that received the most opinions/votes.

Yet the very vast majority of Monarchs that i have had, including my current, seem to think that they are the rulers of all in the Kingdom and they have the right to act without consulting their teammates.

I understand that many players want a Monarch to be a tyrant, to control things and therefore make life easier for them. But for me i find it upsetting and offensive to be expected to follow the thoughts and plans of someone who can not even be bothered asking me if i agree or not.

Am i alone in this way of thinking?

Are there Monarchs out there that take polls of opinions of their Kingdommates and steer the Kingdom in accordance with majority opinion? (if yes then PM me as i want to join).

I sincerely believe that Monarchs be spokespeople and button pushers for their Kingdommates, not tyrannical rulers that think of a "brilliant idea" and then implement it without consulting their fellow players.

What you reckon?

[SillyRabbit]

I am the tyrant of my kingdom. I make the decisions. I always respect and consider the opinions of my teammates, but I ultimately choose what the kingdom does. All of my teammates trust me and my judgement; when there is a difference of opinion I explain why I am making my decisions. Some disagree from time to time, but they know that their role in the kd is as a player, and I am the monarch. This may not work for some kds, but it works for mine.

Don't you feel like a jerk when you log in?

No. Why would I? My kd appreciates the time and effort that I put into this game. They aren't online nearly as much as I am planning the next move and supervising all the provinces. I don't act rude or like a jerk to any of my teammates - I show them the same respect that they show me. I have the most leading experience, and a lot of these players have been with me for a while. When I say 'jump', they say 'how high?'

[The Moon]

Don't you feel like a jerk when you log in?

[Band of Horses]

<Elit> pure Dictatorship
<Elit> there is no democracy :P

As Elit says, so says Utopia.

[Runefire]

I have played under both styles before, and yeah I think that the "tyrant" style is probably best. You can take all the polls or go around discussing the advantages or disadvantages of any situation, but at the end of the day, decisions have to be made and I have found that the more "democratic" style ends up slowing down decision making and the kingdom as a whole.

I think the other side of that coin is, more leaders might be willing to be more democratic (not necessarily fully though, see above :)) but so few people actually want to step up and lead, cause who wants to really manage 20+ different ego's and spend a large amount of time, often thankless, doing so.

[Palem]

As monarch I always did my best to get my players opinions and ideas, but there's also an understanding that the decision lies on you. Sometimes you have to make an unpopular decision because you're the one that's not allowed to be angry and irrational.

[KuhaN]

Being monarch is work, if you're monarch then you have the right to be a tyrant because it's like a job. If im monarch people better do whatever i say or im not being monarch. Why would anyone want to be a monarch if they have to listen to kdmates? Being monarch requires the highest activity in the kingdom and this game is basically all about activity. So the most active person usually knows all the right moves, whereas the inactive people need to shutup and just follow directions.

[jwuzi]

Being monarch is work, if you're monarch then you have the right to be a tyrant because it's like a job. If im monarch people better do whatever i say or im not being monarch. Why would anyone want to be a monarch if they have to listen to kdmates? Being monarch requires the highest activity in the kingdom and this game is basically all about activity. So the most active person usually knows all the right moves, whereas the inactive people need to shutup and just follow directions.

So much this. Being democratic means decisions take too long to happen. People still wont be happy when things don't go their way, and there is no respect. You need to have a leader. You need everyone to trust and follow and have faith you picked the right guy for the job. Otherwise, if you don't agree then try and do a better job yourself.

[Band of Horses]

Being monarch is work, if you're monarch then you have the right to be a tyrant because it's like a job. If im monarch people better do whatever i say or im not being monarch. Why would anyone want to be a monarch if they have to listen to kdmates? Being monarch requires the highest activity in the kingdom and this game is basically all about activity. So the most active person usually knows all the right moves, whereas the inactive people need to shutup and just follow directions.

I see super active noobs all the time (every morning when I look in the mirror)
So activity =/= wisdom

[LCP]

i had a monarch back in age 18-19. He demanded everyone in the kingdom to aid him everyday, even with a huge -Trade balancẹ. If people dont aid him, he'll ask his friends in other kingdom to kill us. :D We got fed up and killed him

[Palem]

Being monarch requires the highest activity in the kingdom and this game is basically all about activity. So the most active person usually knows all the right moves, whereas the inactive people need to shutup and just follow directions.

Being a monarch is just about being the best leader for the kd. I am, admittedly, not the best strategist. It was important to listen to others in these matters. In other matters it was important to ignore concerns and do what I thought was right.

The monarch doesn't have to be the best player, or the most active player, they just need to be the one that's best suited to lead the kd.

[The Moon]

"Why would anyone want to be Monarch if they had to listen to their Kingdommates?"

Are you kidding?

If the "tyrant" is a genius and his/her decisions are constantly the best possible moves/direction for the Kingdom as a group, then ofcourse he/she should be followed without question - as to question them would be foolish.

But i am yet to find a player such as this. It seems most Monarchs have a "brainwave" and simply act upon it without consulting anyone else in the Kingdom.

Aside from anything else, since this is a team game, it is simply polite to consult your teammates.

If there is indeed a Kingdom that uses group opinion to guide it then please PM me.

[PACINO]

you forgot that this is a real time game. Monarch needs to make unpopular and quick decision , which could win wars / save pride / save the age / reduce losses for the kd overall.
If we had to wait for consensus from kd mates when they login and put their thoughts in , we could have been 1mil nw lower or 10k acres short then.

Or we could lose opportunity to seize the day.
Maybe just your luck in running thru bad monarch of ghettos quality. ( Monarch who plays the same game time as you do )

** edit - there are : - Do you want to join my kd , my monarch listen's to all and works accordingly. People come and people go , inactives and a kd full of farms.
Would you like to join us ? - I love it , as i can chillax and play to my own timing. if we war and lose , so be it. if we don't war whole age , so be it.

But best bet is that we won't get to war at all , as it's full of farms and inactives which we constantly need to kill. ( I raze kill more than i trad march )
So do you still want to join us ?

[Runefire]

"Why would anyone want to be Monarch if they had to listen to their Kingdommates?"

Are you kidding?

If the "tyrant" is a genius and his/her decisions are constantly the best possible moves/direction for the Kingdom as a group, then ofcourse he/she should be followed without question - as to question them would be foolish.

But i am yet to find a player such as this. It seems most Monarchs have a "brainwave" and simply act upon it without consulting anyone else in the Kingdom.

Aside from anything else, since this is a team game, it is simply polite to consult your teammates.

If there is indeed a Kingdom that uses group opinion to guide it then please PM me.

So I guess in times of war Generals should consult their rank and file before issuing orders? :)

But there is a difference between being a tyrant and power mad. My experiences with these "tyrant" types of leaders have been positive. They ask for advice/opinions, are willing to explain and help when required. But they realise decisions have to be made and there may not always be the time to court public opinion. The power mad are the 'aid me or die' kind.

Just to put a more concrete example out there, with dealing with public opinion orientated KD's the most common group decision has been selecting a war target. Too many times have I seen suitable targets slip through the KD's grasp because they spend a day or more trying to organise who everyone thinks the KD should go after.

However, the reality is it is a players market. These types of KD's usually make it clear what the structure is, so if people don't like playing under such a leader, they can simply leave.

[Milkman]

A monarch is a leader who is elected because the kingdom believes he's the most competent for the job. He stands above the rest and guides them towards their goal. That generally means he has to boss the rest around so that everybody marches in the same direction. As a kingdom you can decide the general direction of the age but it is the monarch/leadership who makes the plans and make sure the kingdom executes them. I think your problem is more with the fact that you've had a lot of incappable monarch rather then that they don't consult the kingdom.