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calamitousphoe · 6 months ago

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RP Recruiting Blog

This is a notice for all who are interested in joining our RP group on discord.

This server is only meant for Villain/Vigilante characters. However, if you wish to join and RP as a villain/vigilante AU of a character, that would be perfectly fine. OC characters are more than welcome to join.

Requirements: You must agree to follow all the rules of Calamitous Phoenix, also please pay special attention to the role playing rules. You must be able to role play in 3rd person. However, small things like: 'thoughts' and "speech" are obviously an exception to that role.

Server Rules:

- Be respectful to everyone.

- You must be at least 15 to join.

- No NSFW related pfps or usernames.

- All sexual/suggestive content will be deleted.

- Don't give out IRL information.

- Trollers will not be tolerated, and will be banned.

- Please don't bring any real world drama, or politics into this server.

- Listen to the administrators when they ask you to do, or to not do something. They are here to keep order in this server safe, and do have the right to kick you... if you do not cooperate.

Role Playing Rules:

Fill out the introduction form before you join the RP.

You have to write at least Semi-lit and RP in third POV.

If you want to send images in a RP, post it in the aesthetic board channel.

Creating different quirks is allowed. But there are rules to make this realistic. The quirk limit is two, every quirk has to have at least two negative side effects. Your character also will need to have at least two weaknesses in general (doesn't need to be major, just a few flaws. Example: overthinking, dissociation/zoning out, or a temper.)

This is a group that welcomes Original Characters: However, we would like to remind you of a few common courtesies.

No one is obligated to accept your character as their OC/CC's lover, relative, or close friend.

AU (Alternative Universe) characters are permitted: However, keep in mind that someone may already RP that same character. The limit of each AU CC (Canon Character) in this server is two. Also, to clear any confusion for others, your AU CC cannot have the same occupation as theirs.

Be respectful. You will be asked to change your RP character if you cause drama.

Current character taken: Villain Midoriya Izuku AU,

If you are still interested in joining our group, please pm us with your character forms filled out!

Character Form:

Name: Name Status: Known, or unknown? Alias: __ [Please keep in mind that whatever your alias' name is, will also be your name in the server.] Character's Pronouns: Date Of Birth: M/D [month/Day]

Age: Age Status: Known, or unknown?

Quirk: [The quirk limit is two.] Quirk Weakness: [There has to be two or more weakness, for each quirk.] Quirk Information: Quirk Status: Known, or unknown?

Occupation: [These are your opinions: Assassin, Villain, Vigilante, Spy, Informant, Hacker, and Strategist. You may choose up to 3. ] Skills: What values do you bring to the table? [Your character's skill set.] Weaknesses: You have to have at least two weakness, that aren't quirk related.

Personality: Tell us about your character, what type of traits/vibe do they have? [Here are some suggestions: Optimistic, Sober, Flirtatious, proper, deep thinker, talkative, easily approachable, standoffish, timid, crude, misunderstood.]

Extra: What are your character's likes/dislikes? Are there any obsessions that they have? And what do they look like?

#oc rp #cc rp #roleplay #villain rp #vigilante rp #discord rp #strategic #ao3feed #archive of our own #mha #my hero academia #bnha #bnha oc #mha oc #boku no hero academia

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nicklloydnow · 7 months ago

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On today’s episode of ‘The March Towards World War 3’:

“The Biden administration has quietly given Ukraine permission to strike inside Russia — solely near the area of Kharkiv — using U.S.-provided weapons, three U.S. officials and two other people familiar with the move said Thursday, a major reversal that will help Ukraine to better defend its second-largest city.

“The president recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use U.S. weapons for counter-fire purposes in Kharkiv so Ukraine can hit back at Russian forces hitting them or preparing to hit them,” one of the U.S. officials said, adding that the policy of not allowing long-range strikes inside Russia “has not changed.”

(…)

In effect, Ukraine can now use American-provided weapons, such as rockets and rocket launchers, to shoot down launched Russian missiles heading toward Kharkiv, at troops massing just over the Russian border near the city, or Russian bombers launching bombs toward Ukrainian territory. But the official said Ukraine cannot use those weapons to hit civilian infrastructure or launch long-range missiles, such as the Army Tactical Missile System, to hit military targets deep inside Russia.

It’s a stunning shift the administration initially said would escalate the war by more directly involving the U.S. in the fight. But worsening conditions for Ukraine on the battlefield –– namely Russia’s advances and improved position in Kharkiv –– led the president to change his mind.

(…)

The Biden administration hinted that a decision had either been secretly made or forthcoming in recent days. On Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who supports a restriction lift, became the first U.S. official to publicly hint that Biden may shift course and allow such strikes, telling reporters that U.S. policy toward Ukraine would evolve as needed. White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby later did not rule out a potential change.

Those messages came after top U.S. allies, such as the United Kingdom and France, said Ukraine should have the right to attack inside Russia using Western weapons. Lawmakers from both parties also supported the move publicly and privately, while top U.S. military officials briefed Congress behind closed doors that relaxing the restriction had “military value,” POLITICO first reported.

(…)

Some officials are concerned that Ukraine, when it attacks inside Russia using its own drones, has hit military targets unrelated to Russia’s invasion. The U.S. has strongly delivered the message that Kyiv must use American weapons only to directly hit Russian military sites used for its invasion of Ukraine, but not civilian infrastructure.

Ukrainian officials, from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on down, have pushed for the Biden administration to change its policy ever since Russia launched a large assault on Kharkiv. For weeks they’ve said an inability to attack Russian troop positions over the border complicated Ukraine’s defense of Kharkiv and the country writ large.

In a discussion with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Wednesday, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov made a “hard push” to use U.S. weapons in Russia, according to a person with knowledge of the call.”

“Dmitry Suslov, who hosts the program Bolshaya Igra (Big Game) on Russia's First Channel, weighed in on the debate surrounding whether Kyiv should be allowed to use American-supplied weapons to hit targets within Russia. Newsweek has emailed the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment.

The U.S. has stipulated Ukraine not use long-range missile systems such as ATACAMS (Army Tactical Missile System) on Russian territory for fear of escalation. However, Kyiv has said that this leaves it vulnerable, especially in light of a Russian offensive launched on May 10 in the Kharkiv region.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg is among world figures who have said that Ukraine should be able to use the weapons, with others backing the move, including lawmakers in Lithuanian, Germany and the U.S. itself.

Meanwhile, Cezary Tomczyk, Poland's deputy defense secretary, told Polish radio that Warsaw has given Ukraine the green light to use its weapons to strike targets inside Russia and "does not apply any restrictions."

Suslov, a member of the Council for Foreign and Defense Policy (SVOP), considered Russia's leading foreign-policy think tank, wrote an op-ed for Russian publication Profile. It said that, to show Russia was serious about its readiness to escalate, "it is worth thinking about conducting a demonstration (that is, not combat) nuclear explosion."

(…)

In Suslov's view, such a move would "bring the conflict to a fundamentally different level," erasing one of the main "red lines" that have existed since the start of the war, and meaning "the direct entry of the United States and NATO into the war against Russia."

As such, Moscow should conduct exercises not only on the use of tactical nuclear weapons, but also on the use of strategic nuclear forces, said Suslov. He is also a deputy director at Moscow's Higher School of Economics (HSE).

"The political and psychological effect of a mushroom cloud shown live on all global TV channels would I hope focus the minds of Western politicians back to what was the only thing that prevented wars between the great powers after 1945 which they have lost—the fear of nuclear war," said Suslov.

(…)

Another prominent figure in the SVOP, Sergei Karaganov, wrote an article for state agency RIA Novosti titled, "There is no choice: Russia will have to launch a nuclear strike on Europe." However, it prompted a backlash from other SVOP members, who published a statement condemning rhetoric pushed in Russia about nuclear weapons as "the height of irresponsibility."”

“France’s President, Emmanuel Macron, and Germany’s Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, became the latest and most powerful leaders to give at least a conditional green light to Ukraine using military aid for cross-border strikes on the French leader’s visit to Germany this week.

Mr Macron said late on Tuesday that Ukraine should be allowed to “neutralise military sites from which the missiles are fired” – following Ukrainian complaints that Russia is launching attacks from within its borders using assets that Ukraine cannot strike.

(…)

Mr Scholz’s spokesperson said on Wednesday that “defensive action is not limited to one’s own territory, but also includes the territory of the aggressor”, adding that Germany’s terms for use of its weapons were “confidential”.

Ukraine’s allies have also stepped up military aid commitments in the face of Russian advances across the front line. Sweden pledged more than £1bn in new weapons on Wednesday, following major new commitments from Spain, the Netherlands, and Belgium this week.

The shift by two of Europe’s major powers and leading arms suppliers to Kyiv follows a wider trend across the continent. Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron said earlier this month that Ukraine “has the right” to use British weapons against targets in Russia. Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Czechia have all made the same commitment.

Dmitry Suslov, deputy director of influential Russian think-tank Council on Foreign and Defence Policy, advocated on Wednesday a “demonstration nuclear explosion” to strengthen deterrence.

It followed President Vladmir Putin’s warning to European governments to “be aware of what they are playing with”, given their smaller land areas and dense populations. “This is a factor that they should keep in mind before talking about striking deep into Russian territory,” he said.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said last week that Moscow will retaliate with strikes on British targets in and outside Ukraine if British weapons are used to strike Russian territory.

(…)

Dr Emma Salisbury, associate fellow at the Council on Geostrategy, noted that the Kremlin has issued threats throughout the war to deter support for Ukraine.

“Fears of escalation to a Russia-Nato conflict are understandable, but we should remember that such fears have been expressed during every discussion about an increase of support to Ukraine,” she said. “Ultimately, if Putin wants to attack Nato, he will find an excuse to do so no matter what we do.”

Retired US army commander and military analyst Ben Hodges suggested that Russia would assess a nuclear strike as damaging to its own interests.

“You always have to be concerned that Russia might use a nuclear weapon because they have thousands of them,” he said. “But the likelihood is very low because there are no positive outcomes for Russia once they use a nuclear weapon. The benefit is the threat.

“I think the Chinese are signalling to them that they would not accept that. And I think the Russians also believed President Biden when [he] said that Russia would suffer ‘catastrophic consequences’ if they used a nuclear weapon.”

Russia’s response is likely to focus on the new weapons shipments arriving in Ukraine, suggests Dr Marina Miron of the Defence Studies Department at King’s College London.

“I’m sure we will hear more about tactical nuclear weapons because I don’t see any good options in terms of responding by force, at least not on Nato territory,” she said. “In terms of a covered response, we are seeing it right now in the increased activity of Russian intelligence services in Europe.

(…)

The impact of Ukraine being able to use Western weapons such as French Scalp missiles or British Storm Shadows against targets in Russia would be an “annoyance” to the Russian military, but is unlikely to turn the tide of a war in Ukraine’s favour, Dr Miron added.

Mr Hodges said the decision was important to “build momentum” and that he hoped the Biden Adminstration would soon follow suit and lift restrictions from the use of US weapons.”

“Russia has already begun to more actively prepare covert bombings, arson attacks and damage to infrastructure on European soil, directly and via proxies, with little apparent concern about causing civilian fatalities, intelligence officials believe.

(…)

“We assess the risk of state-controlled acts of sabotage to be significantly increased,” said Thomas Haldenwang, head of German domestic intelligence. Russia now seems comfortable carrying out operations on European soil “[with] a high potential for damage,” he told a security conference last month hosted by his agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.

Haldenwang spoke just days after two German-Russian nationals were arrested in Bayreuth, Bavaria, for allegedly plotting to attack military and logistics sites in Germany on behalf of Russia.

Two men were charged in the UK in late April with having started a fire at a warehouse containing aid shipments for Ukraine. English prosecutors accuse them of working for the Russian government.

In Sweden, security services are meanwhile investigating a series of recent railway derailments, which they suspect may be acts of state-backed sabotage.

Russia has attempted to destroy the signalling systems on Czech railways, the country’s transport minister told the FT last month.

In Estonia, an attack on the interior minister’s car in February and those of journalists were perpetrated by Russian intelligence operatives, the country’s Internal Security Service has said. France’s ministry of defence also warned this year of possible sabotage attacks by Russia on military sites.

“The obvious conclusion is that there has been a real stepping up of Russian activity,” said Keir Giles, senior consulting fellow at Chatham House, the think-tank.

“One cannot tell if that’s a reflection of the fact that the Russians are throwing more resources at it; whether they are being more sloppy and getting caught; or whether western counter-intelligence has simply become better at detecting and stopping it,” he added. “Whatever it is though — there is a lot going on.”

(…)

In the weeks following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, more than 600 Russian intelligence officers operating in Europe with diplomatic cover were ejected, dealing serious damage to the Kremlin’s spy network across the continent.

In a recent report, analysts at the UK’s Royal United Services Institute highlighted the efforts to which Russia had gone to reconstitute its presence in Europe, often using proxies. Those include members of the Russian diaspora as well as organised crime groups with which the Kremlin has long-standing ties.

A key strategic shift has also occurred, with so-called “Committees of Special Influence” coordinating intelligence operations country-by-country for the Kremlin, drawing together what were previously piecemeal efforts by the country’s fractious security services and other Kremlin players.

(…)

Questions have been raised, for instance, over a so-far unexplained explosion at a BAE Systems munitions factory in Wales that supplies shells used by Ukraine. In October 2014 a Czech arms depot where weapons for Kyiv were being stored was destroyed; Russian military intelligence agents were later revealed to have planted explosives at the site.

A huge fire broke out on Friday at a factory in Berlin owned by the arms company Diehl, which also supplies Ukraine. More than 160 specialist firefighters were called to tackle the blaze, with residents in a huge swath of the west of the capital told to keep windows closed due to possible toxic fumes.

“As ever with Russia, it’s wise not to look for a single explanation of why they are doing anything. There’s always a combination of things going on,” said Giles.

“These pinprick attacks we’ve seen so far are of course to create disruption, but they can also be used for disinformation. And then there is what Russia learns from these attacks if they want to immobilise Europe for real . . . They’re practice runs.”

#russia #ukraine #war #invasion #nuclear #world war 3 #wwiii #Biden #putin #macron #scholz #nato #ben hodges #suslov #zelensky #terrorism #tactical #strategic

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