Q. What is the Free People’s Coalition?

A. The Free People’s Coalition [FPC] is a gaming group dedicated to the fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. Similar to ‘clan’ gaming of other specific games, the FPC operates for all games involved with Middle-earth and other fantasy gaming online.

Q. Does the FPC only play Lord of the Rings titles?

A. No. While we are a Lord of the Rings Gaming Group we are not bound only to games from that series. We wouldn’t want to restrict what games our players could enjoy, and many titles out there take from Tolkien’s work anyway, so often times even in a Star Wars game you’ll find some elements of Middle-earth.

Q. What makes the FPC Different from other Gaming Groups?

A. Where other gaming groups concentrate on stats and ranks, the FPC goes a step further by offering exclusive gaming content such as Interviews, Sneak Peaks, and Sanctioned Chats for the enrichment of our users and our community.

Q. How can the FPC offer it’s exclusive content?

A. The FPC is a part of Gaming Havens at TheOneRing.net. With this we are privy to the same exclusive content and insider information as the site, and that is passed on to our players.

Q. What can I play as in the FPC?

A. The FPC is broken up into four cultures, the World of Men, the Realms of the Elves, the Kingdom of the Dwarves and the Hobbits of the Shire. Every player can choose to represent any side they choose.

Q. If I choose to be a Hobbit in the FPC, can I not be an Dwarf in Middle-earth: Online?

A. Realistically, no. But the FPC is here for fun, so if you choose to be a Hobbit in the FPC, you can still use a Dwarf in Middle-earth: Online. Although it will look odd seeing a Dwarf scream “For the Shire!”

Q. I just joined the FPC, what rank am I?

A. Depending on which culture you’ve joined, you will be the entry rank for that culture. For the World of Men the entry level rank is LEVEL 1, the Realms of the Elves entry level is LEVEL 1, the Kingdom of the Dwarves entry level rank is Guard, and for the Hobbits of the Shire the entry rank is Rascal.

Q. How do I gain rank within my Culture?

A. Ranks are given based on participation and attitude. If a Hobbit Rascal goes around making friends and helping other recruits find information, then the Hobbit Thain will notice these acts of citizenship and award that Rascal a higher rank and possibly a monthly award.

Q. What are monthly rewards?

A. On the first meeting of every month all of the Senior Officials in each Culture will gather to discuss the members of each group, during these meetings they will select members who have shown exceptional citizenship or have done great services for their culture, or the Coalition. These selected members will receive an award specific to their culture, and will be featured on the FreePeoples.net front page in the awards section. Occasionally we will have prizes for members who show exceptional citizenship, donated from one of our many affiliates.

Q. Are there Coalition Ranks?

A. With each culture often times competing for this or that, it is illogical to place a member of any one culture as a ruling member over the four, in this way there are no ‘Coalition Ranks’, however the leader of each culture is part of the ruling council who make decisions based on what is good for the Coalition, not just for their specific culture.

Q. Are there subcultures within a culture, ie are Gondor and Rohan represented, or are the does the world of men cover all regions of that race.

A. Trying to keep things as simple as possible in a difficult world, each culture represents that entire race. With this being said it is not ruled out that within a culture there will not be troops or sects within that culture like the Riders of Rohan, or the Marksman of Mirkwood, these divisions are decided on by the culture during their meetings.

Q. I’m a Guard in the world of Dwarves, and I play a game that is not yet supported by my culture, can I become a Hammer Guard [Dwarven Game Official or GO]for my game?

A. We are not currently allowing entry level ranks to hold the rank of Game Official. To become a Game Official for a new game you must first speak with your cultures Senior Officials, in this case the Dwarven OFFICIAL. From there you must show him or her that you are responsible and can organize and lead a game group, then receive two promotions from Guard to LEVEL 3. As soon as you complete these requirements then you are eligible to be a GO.

Q. What are the responsibilities of a Game Official?

A. A Game Official is responsible for organizing the players within a specific game. Lets say Hammer Guard Dorin is the Game Official for War of the Ring, he would then be responsible for organizing all players who play War of the Ring [be it not out yet] and prepare them for play within the group, and either casually or competitively against other groups. A Game Official selects a Game Executive Official, or a Game XO. The Game XO acts as the Game Officials eyes and ears when they are not available, and answers any questions on the specific game as needed.

Q. Does every culture have a Game Official for each game?

A. No. Some cultures may choose to support different games, so the World of Men may have a group that plays Diablo 2, where the Realms of the Elves might not. Members of any culture can engage in casual or competitive play with any group, they may even play on the side of another culture as it is not unheard of in Middle-earth for a handful of Hobbits, a pair of men, an Elf, a Dwarf and a Wizard to accomplish great things when together

Q. Does the FPC support a game if only one culture plays it?

A. No. On the FPC main page you will find a link to each of the different gaming stats pages, for a page to exist for a specific game, at least two cultures must support it. This way the stats are arranged by participating cultures in way of number of games, kills, victories, or levels, depending on the type of game.

Q. What role does Competition play between Cultures in the FPC?

A. The FPC exists to be a friendly place for J.R.R. Tolkien fans to gather and play games, while the community is our primary goal here in the FPC, we will also hold competitions between cultures for various games. These competitions are optional but participation can result in awards and promotions. Competitions range from deathmatches, to cooperative missions and will depend on the options given by each supported game.

Q. What are my responsibilities as a member of the FPC?

A. From the Dwarven Guard to the Elven Herald, each member of the FPC is working towards a common goal. That goal is a positive community for fans of Middle-earth to play and enjoy their time. Members are expected to help one another and treat everyone with respect and dignity regardless of culture or rank. Sometimes it’s ok to poke fun at a fellow member during role play, say an Elf mocking a Dwarf’s eating habbits, but that is where it ends. We’re all here to have fun, and keep this community strong.