TEST Alliance is dying and WinterCo is killing it
I'm done staying silent, my friends. Yes, more fresh TEST drama! TEST is dead, or dead inside and rotting. And WinterCo and Fraternity are the ones that killed it.
I'm a FC in TEST who's been feeling the slow decline for the months I've been here.
TEST thrived in Geminate. The content was glorious. The PVP was glorious. The PVE was glorious. When the Goons came to kick over our little test-icle, even though we had to abandon the region, we helped WinterCo fight for the region back. Geminate was saved from the Goons because of us. But, what was the reward? We were told to pack up and move to Tribute, "next-door neighbors" to Fraternity, with the promise of sovereignty.
Tribute was a downgrade but we took the L and moved anyways. That was the deal.
THAT WAS 15 WEEKS AGO!
For 15 weeks, we have been living on Fraternity's couch. We're squatting in a region we don't own. I can't run my Ishtars or ratting because Fraternity keeps ruining everything in their own space, botting, stealing sites, and getting dropped on because they keep moving blueprints in their freighters or losing AT ships.
The content has dried up. The fleet numbers drop with every passing week. We are losing pilots to AFK status because there is literally nothing to do but defend Fraternity's multiboxers, botters, and cheaters in a system where we don't even have a say. We are being systematically starved of content by WinterCo and Fraternity, and I'm increasingly believing our enemies when they call us "pets".
And as "pets", who is holding the leash, my friends? Noraus.
Noraus is the only thing standing between TEST and actual gameplay. We have gone nearly 15 weeks without an approval for sovereignty from him. In exchange for all of the hard work we put in to save Geminate, what do we get? NOTHING. No moons, no SRP, no income, no sovereignty.
The other day was the last straw for me, though. The Enyo King of Tribute, "Sir Tobias Helm", peace be upon his name, finally had enough of the cowardice from WinterCo and TEST Alliance leadership. This absolute chad took matters into his own hands and started to entosis our own home system.
So, what did the illustrious Sappo and High Command do to commend Sir Tobias?
Banned him and blacklisted him from the alliance. Forever.
This absolute king tried to get our alliance to play the game and got banned for it.
This leads me to the logical conclusion for what's currently happening to TEST. TEST high command has sold out to WinterCo, who is trying to poach members from our alliance while we bleed out slowly. This situation has had zero transparency around it from TEST leadership. Line members are routinely ignored when asking about sovereignty or any matters related to WinterCo. The sentiment against WinterCo from TEST line members is at an all-time low, with the mood increasingly becoming tense and dour. Nobody, except for high command, actually wants to be in this coalition of scum. We routinely endure racism and mockery in the WinterCo discord server's general channels, with their own diplomatic team doing nothing to stop this. WinterCo's own line members clearly does not want to be our allies either. They want our alliance to die a slow and pathetic death.
I made several suggestions to alliance leadership both in private and on Discord. Those suggestions have gone ignored, and on several occasions my posts have been straight-up DELETED.
TEST alliance leadership is actively censoring discussion around this topic in our Discord server. An esteemed Alliance Tournament pilot in Dreddit was recently just timed out for 72 hours for discussing this very topic.
I'm highly considering just dropping roles and joining a more competently lead group of players, but TEST is my home. I'm tired of WinterCo getting away with killing a supposed ally.
If you needed any more evidence that WinterCo are the real problem with this game, let this post be your evidence. Fuck WinterCo.