Getting Started

1. What is this place?
This is a region, one of thousands in NationStates. You can think of regions as continents in real life. They are basically containers for nations, and nations can only be in one region at a time, though each nation can move as often as it pleases.

Ridgefield is a region themed after a small town, originally founded in 2010. It fosters a positive atmosphere and is very influential (having many World Assembly members and lots of influence as a result!). The region is home to a micro-RP style where leaders of each nation can interact with each other directly within the town, leading to many fascinating - and often hilarious - interactions.

2. What is there to do?
You can chat with your regionmates through the Regional Message Board (RMB) and Discord server, take part in regional activities, and aim to become a part of the regional government! The primary focus of any region is to aim for its residents to have fun, no matter what. You are also welcome to focus on playing issues if you wish, but we'd love to have you be active within the region!

3. What are the rules here?
There are a number of rules in Ridgefield to ensure that the region remains safe and fun for all residents, most of which can be found in the Government dispatch. The most important rule, and one that often gets on the nerves of long-term residents if it is not followed (the dusty old fools!) is avoiding posting more than one post consecutively on the RMB, with edits being made to previous posts instead if something new has to be brought up.

4. How does the government work?
The government is meritocratic, meaning that government officials are selected by the Mayor and Founder based on how skilled they are at accomplishing the tasks of the given position. If you would like to grab the attention of the government to see if you can be given a position, you can start a campaign or inquire the Mayor or Founder directly. You can read more here.

5. Can I be the delegate?
The delegate (Mayor) is elected on a running basis through WA endorsements. Whoever has the most endorsements in the region becomes the Mayor. If you want to become the Mayor, you are able to start a campaign by contacting people that have not yet endorsed you and asking them to help.

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Now What?

Still wondering what this game has to offer? You are in luck! NS is a vast, complicated world, and you can play for years before you even break the surface. Here are a few resources to help you find something that interests you.

FAQ: The official game FAQ can be found here, and a more comprehensive version is maintained on the Technical subforum here.

Roleplay: On NS, roleplay (commonly known as RP) is text-based, and consists of players writing collaborative stories that bring their nations (or people within their nations) to life. It usually takes place on the NS forums, player-created offsite forums, or region RMBs.
RP Guide: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=170098
RP Questions: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=118474
Advice for New Players: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=33989

Gameplay: The term "gameplay" (commonly known as GP) encompasses a number of things. It includes the "issues game," where players answer issues to build their nations in a certain way and compete on World Census reports; the "invasion game" (commonly known as raiding and defense, or R/D); and regional politics.
NS Issues: viewtopic.php?f=13&t=88
R/D Guide: viewtopic.php?f=12&t=307728
Region Building: viewtopic.php?f=12&t=353470

Real-world debate: This is mostly self-explanatory, and takes place in the General subforum (commonly known as NSG), or on regions' offsite forums and RMBs.
First Stop for NSG: viewtopic.php?f=20&t=88796

World Assembly: The World Assembly (commonly known as the WA) is a mixture of RP and GP. It is the world's only international legislative body, similar to the real-world United Nations. Many players like to spend time writing their own WA resolutions or discussing proposals written by others. This takes place in the General Assembly and Security Council subforums. If this sounds interesting to you, it is highly recommended that you begin there, by asking questions and reading other players' work.
General Assembly Rules/Advice: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=159348
Security Council Guide: viewtopic.php?f=24&t=218040

Something is missing... So, you may ask, how does one declare war? What about setting up alliances, or trading? NS does not include functions for war or trade, but that should be no obstacle to you! If you have a large enough group, you may attack another region, which is called "raiding" (see "Gameplay" in the section above this). You can also begin an RP war with another player (complete guide here). Trade is RPed on NS, so the best place to go is the GE&T subforum (Help Desk thread). Alliances are a little more complicated, because they can take so many forms. Again, there is no built-in function for alliances, although embassies can be established between regions, and are sometimes used to signify formal agreements. In general, alliances between nations are RPed. Alliances between regions, on the other hand, are most often political gameplay agreements.

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