Asgaard Charter

Preamble
We, the nations of Asgaard, branch out unto the world known as Planet Bob, on July 17, 2009, and on this day we look to prove our existence to be righteous and honor bound to the community we enter. Let it be known that Asgaard is looking to earn the respect of many, the hearts of all, and the swords of those willing to join us.

Article One: Admission and Membership
Admission to Asgaard shall be exclusive and very selective.

I. Asgaard shall be an Maroon alliance. All nations wishing to join Asgaard lower then 10,000 NS must change to the Maroon team. Any nation above 10,000 NS must show sufficient reasons why they do not want to change to the Maroon sphere. You will have a time period of 30 days to initiate all sphere changes.

'''II. Application Process'''

A. Any nation may request admission to Asgaard by filling out a thread on the Asgaard forums with information indicated in the New Member application thread on the Asgaard forums.

B. Any member of Asgaard may then ask the applicant questions in their application thread which will be provided in a private alliance only forum for all potential members.

C. The Lord of Internal Affairs will be responsible for deciding whether or not the applicant will be accepted and put into the next step of the application process.

D. After an applicant is accepted they will be put into a 10 day period in which they are assessed as a member of the CN community. They will be given a basic nation building test and a test on rules of Asgaard to be completed prior to alliance acceptance. Nations under 90 days old will have to be put into the mentor program during their probationary period.

E. After 10 days of evaluation and upon successfully completing the tests or the mentor program it is up to the Lord of Internal Affairs to decide whether or not the applicant will become a full member, be given a second test, or if they will not be accepted.

F. During any point of this process the Gods may give a "pass" to applicants to void them of any and all steps if deemed proper for the situation at hand.

III. Once a nation has been admitted to the community and has passed its trial, they shall have the same rights and privileges as other members of Asgaard, including, but not limited to, the right to run for the Council of Lords, the right to propose amendments to the Charter, and the right to submit a complaint for misconduct against any other member of Asgaard to the Gods.

'''IV. Secession and Expulsion from Asgaard.'''

A. Any member wishing to leave must first post a letter of resignation. A member wishing to leave must agree to pay back any debts to the alliance before leaving.

B. Any member leaving during a time of war will be considered a deserter and may never return.

C. A violation to either of the above can be met with military force with the exception of failing to notify the alliance of resignation.

D. It is requested that members give a 24 hour notice of departure, government members must give notice of their departure or face consequences for deserting their posts.

Article Two: Government
Asgaard shall be ruled by a government consisting of a Council of Lords and their superiors, the Gods.

A. The Gods are members that comprise the highest echelon within Asgaard. Every "God" takes the title of a Norse God from history as their leading rank while they preside within Asgaard. No Norse God may be used twice, and their name is forever tied to the ruler that takes their name.

B. Powers: The Gods shall decide the actions of the alliance by a consensus amongst themselves, including, but not limited to:

1. Foreign Treaties

2. Declarations of War

3. Laws and Policies

C. Term of Office: The Gods at the time of ratification of the charter shall serve indefinitely in good behavior and its members may only be removed if they step down willingly or if 75% of the Council of Lords votes to remove them. If a God needs to be absent for a period of time not exceeding one month, the God may appoint someone to serve in the interim. If a God needs to be absent for a period of more than one month or chooses to step down, they may appoint their permanent replacement. If a God steps down, they will continue to maintain forum/admin rights on the forums and the IRC channel and be given the honorary title of Demi-God.

D. If a time comes where it is deemed proper to add a new God to the ranks the amendment must be ratified with the full support of the Gods and Council of Lords, and the new God must also have overwhelming support.

E. If the Gods cannot agree on an issue before them, a majority vote of the Council of Lords will be used to break the tie.

'''II. Council of Lords'''

The Council of Lords shall be composed of five elected Department Lords, each specializing in a different area.

A. The five elected Lords: The membership of Asgaard shall elect five Department Lords, each specializing in a particular area of the alliance's operation.

1. Lord of Defense: Responsible for all areas involving the military and war administration up to and including all military planning.

2. Lord of Recruitment: Responsible for recruitment, coordinating the mentor program, and coordinating nation building with the Lord of Finance.

3. Lord of Internal Affairs: Responsible for the internal environment of the alliance including forums, rosters, trades, communications and education.

4. Lord of Foreign Affairs: Responsible for conducting foreign relations with other alliances and negotiating treaties.

5. Lord of Finance: Responsible for the economics of the alliance and all aspects there of, along with and coordinating nation building with the Minster of Recruitment.

B. Selection: The Department Lords shall be elected by the membership and will serve for a period of three months. If there is ever a vacancy for a Lord position, the Gods shall have the power to appoint someone to fill the vacant position.

C. Absence from Government: Should a member of the Council of lords be inactive for a period of time exceeding one third of their term the Council of Lords may have a remaining majority vote in conjunction with full support from the Gods to remove the lord.

'''III. Elections'''

Elections for positions in the Council of Lords are to be held every three months (March, June, September, and December) All days given in electoral procedure are in CN Time. On the last Sunday of February, May, August and November, nominations for the position of Council of Lords may be put forward; this nomination period lasts for forty-eight (48) hours. At the conclusion of the nomination period (Tuesday) debates will be opened and candidates are welcomed to post their platforms and other campaign media in the designated threads. Debates shall last three days. On Friday Voting shall be opened and elections will start, these will last 48 hours until they stop on Sunday. Within 24 hours of the conclusion of the voting process, the elected individuals will take office. The previous Council of Lords stays in office, until the newly elected persons take office. The Gods are to preside over these elections and maintains executive power over them. In the event there are not enough nominees for all council slots, the Gods may appoint someone to fill the vacancy.

Any member of Asgaard in good standing shall be eligible to run for any office in Asgaard. A person may run for more than one Lord position and should the member win an election for more than one office, they shall have the choice of which office they would like to serve in and the runner up for the second office shall hold that position. If this leaves a Lord position vacant, the Gods shall appoint someone to serve the term.

Article Three: War and Peace
Asgaard shall be a predominately peaceful alliance but shall not hesitate to defend itself or assist its allies if needed.

I. War in General: No member of Asgaard shall engage in any aggressive attacks or spy missions that are not explicitly authorized by the Gods with the advice of the Lords of Defense and Foreign Affairs. Situations in which aggressive military action may be authorized include but are not limited to alliance wide wars, defense against rogue attacks, regulated tournaments conducted with the supervision of the Lord of Defense AND a tech raid that has been sanctioned by the member having obtained a license from the Lord of Defense. If a member of Asgaard is attacked, that member has the right to defend themselves by any and all means.

'''II. Alliance Wide Wars:''' The Gods shall have the sole power to declare war on another alliance. The decision to declare war must be made by a majority vote of the Gods, with the advice of the Council of Lords. Once the Gods choose to declare war, the declaration must be posted on the Cybernations Forums to take effect. After the Gods have authorized the war, the Lord of Defense shall be responsible for conducting it. Decisions about peace and surrender terms shall be made by the Gods, with the advice of the Council of Lords.

'''III. Individual Nation Wars:''' In the event that a member of Asgaard comes under attack by a single nation not acting as a part of an alliance wide war, the nation attacked shall have the right to defend itself. If the nation attacking is unaligned, that nation can be dealt with to the full extent of the military. If the nation attacking is aligned, diplomatic means shall be used to resolve the dispute first and if diplomatic means are exhausted, military means may be used.

'''IV. Nuclear Weapons:''' Asgaard shall not carry out a first strike nuking unless it is approved by the Gods under the advisory of the Lord of Defense.

V. Tech Raiding: Tech raiding is allowed as long as a member obtains a license. The license will be obtained by taking a class, taught by the Lord of Defense, or their designated representative. Any unauthorized tech raid attacks will result in penalties as listed on the Asgaard forums. Penalties may be changed by majority of the Gods agreeing to change or a majority vote of the Council of Lords. Tech raids will be monitored by the Lord of Defense. All tech raiding rules and regulations shall be desginated to members that comprise Asgaard, failure to comply can ultimately result in expulsion if deemed necessary.

Article Four: Amendments
I. Any member of Asgaard may propose amendments to the Charter of Asgaard.

II. A majority vote of the Council of Lords and Gods is required to ratify amendments to the charter.

Article Five: Disbandment
To merge Asgaard with another alliance or disband it, a majority vote of the Council of Lords and Gods is required. The merger or disbandment must then be approved by a 2/3 vote of the total membership of Asgaard.