[Jupiter_Storm]

I put something about this in Dev's thread but I'll re-iterate here in more clarity.

What they are good for:

• The Imperial Guard (and others) are necessary in order to promote an immersive environment where people cannot simply run rampant and do generally silly things that are at odds with the 'City Setting', such as public urination, street fights, or far less savory activities that shall go unnamed and expect to get away with it.
  
  
• The MAJOR Cities and Towns (read: not all of them) are staple locations in the lore around which certain parts of the established story hinge. As such they require a powerful defense force that can resist any attempts by villains (and protagonist vagabonds) to assert control over them.
  
  
• There is a requirement for an 'official' group of players who are mandated, by the local authorities, to post bounties and quests for the RPG's "Adventuring Parties" (at least, if we were going with a classic high fantasy setting), such that the actions of antagonists (which are an integral part of promoting conflict in a narrative setting) receive public recognition and those who want to engage with their narrative - as part of their own 'Hero(?) Narrative' - can be more well informed. This takes some pressure off Eventmins / GMs / Dev to create content and facilitates more player-created content.
  
  
• The aforementioned antagonists, if dealt with, need somewhere they can be imprisoned - for a time - to allow for a natural 'break' in the story. A calm between storms, as it were. Repeat offenders could of course be executed, and should be, as a natural outcome if they are beaten. Others can be released after a given period of time which allows for continuity of the plot. The Guards facilitate this with Fort Arjav, which is a horrifyingly nightmarish place to live and serves as a suitable narrative hook for allowing villains to emerge bigger and better, when they are released, due to what they invariably experience behind bars.
  

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What they should not be used for, and why:

• This is (to my understanding, unless it was intended to be something else), a High Fantasy Adventure RPG. The 'main characters' of it are the Adventurers - for whom the driving force behind their own stories and motivations is the concept of High Adventure. High Adventure is a state whereby there is always some sort of problem that requires bolder individuals with unique skill-sets to solve, thus providing a narrative hook for characters to continue their natural progression and immerse themselves in, adventures.
  
  
• The prevalence of the Imperial Guard's involvement with cases that extend beyond the borders of the Cities (read: being called out to camps in the wilderness, the forest, or the deserts in the case of foreign Guard Forces) detracts from this state of High Adventure, because their status as an official organization can be waved in the faces of hardened warriors (which adventurers objectively are, given what they do regularly), forcing them to stand down and twiddle their thumbs while Uncle Tom tackles the bad guy.
  
  
• As such, I do not think that the Guards (of anywhere) have any business involving themselves in activity BEYOND the borders of areas that effectively serve as both 'sanctuaries' where you have a pretty solid chance of not getting attacked, and public hubs. I.e. Keep them inside the Cities. It is not about the plausibility of whether a 'realistic' guard force would respond or not, it's about maintaining a suitable premise that promotes the narrative growth of OTHER characters in an already-small world.
  
  
• Similarly, joining the Imperial Guard (or any other) - as a character - which is objectively a paramilitary if not fully militarized force, is a disciplined and rigid commitment which sets an altogether different narrative path for that character. Guard Characters should also not have any business in pursuing bounties or quests that other adventurers - for whom freelance adventure is the focus of THEIR story - would want to enlist in. If High Adventure is the intended pathway for a character, and not Military / Police RP, why have they joined an official, governmental defense force?
  

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Alternate take: the Guards, as an Army:

• None of this is to suggest that Guard Mains (i.e. those who join the Imperial Guard because they actually enjoy the premise for their character and don't just log on for fights) should be denied character growth and involvement in the broader world, too. It merely means that they require a different 'trigger' to begin THEIR adventure.
  
  
• The Imperial Guard is a military organization, so their campaigns begin and end for political and geographical reasons. A rebellion in one of the local towns would be a good premise for Guard adventures. The Parasites were a good excuse for them to take the spotlight, because Cellsvich was the target. Additionally, even something as simple as escorting caravans provides a perfect, humble starting point for a long slog through the wilds and an encounter with some bad guys who have taken your comrades captive.
  
  
• Above all else, the Imperial Guard's events should involve Marching Orders. No orders, no march. No Empire or Republic or whatever else condones unsanctioned actions by those displaying their heraldry, because it reflects upon them, politically.
  

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This isn't a rant, and I've tried to present it as so. I'd like these points to at least be considered, because they do make sense regardless of who is making them.

If you take nothing else away from this - whomever shall be looking - always consider what would make for a better narrative. I don't think people play adventurers just so they can slap generic monsters and fight in the Arena, only to sit on the sidelines whenever they have a chance for some proper conflict in a random encounter with another character.

TY love u all bye
 

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Edit: P.S. - The duty of Adventurers

I just realized that I was blaming the Guards for actually responding to these calls when they absolutely should.

If you guys hate them turning up, don't call for them? The ball is in our court too to progress our stories. If your character isn't someone who is capable of dealing with watching an honest brawl in the forest between two grown men (and therefore feels the need to run and call the Fuzz)... The hell you doing out in the dangerous wilderness?