Rusty Knight

By the twelve, Kupo!

[align=center]What's Going On?[/align] [align=center][/align] [align=justify] This Halloween (And also a bit of Bonfire night) the Mythril Blades found themselves dispatched to the far reaches of La Noscea following an urgent request to secure what was rumoured to be a small piece of the fallen moon Dalamud. Not the sort to turn down a well paying task which on paper looked nothing more than a snatch and grab the Blades assembled and made their way to the location. Upon arriving the assembled found themselves in a rather bemusing situation; before them in a sizzling pool sat the fragment in a decorative case as around it a party was in full swing. Many dozens of seemingly harmless party goers under the influence and an obese man wearing a chocobo suit being carted round by enslaved bombs on a (barely) floating bench stood between them and their prize. Plus tens of armed guards. After some careful questioning they learned that this was in fact a party to celebrate the calamity and the intentions were to fire the fragment into a distant mountain to commemorate the fall of the moon; slightly fazing the Blades present. Withdrawing they established a cunning plan to seize the fragment; utilising the usual methods of Ala Mhigans causing trouble (In an amazingly theatrical performance), Ishgardians looking down on others(And missing the seemingly impossible to do so shots) and infiltration even a Doman would be hard pressed to match. Sowing chaos among the party goers they snatched the fragment and made their escape in the ensuing panic; given an incredibly slow chase by the chocobo man as they did. Alas the Halloween event came to a close; but perhaps this may lead to slightly more serious repercussions in the future? [/align] [align=center] (The scrub I am, I took no screenshots during the event so instead find a random one) [/align] [align=center][/align]

[align=center]What's Going On?[/align] So its been a while since we've posted an update but we're still kicking about. After concluding our most recent plot line we've been kicking back with events that pursued particular niché's we wished to explore before diving into our next plot line. (And its looking like a good one at that, not that I'm bias at all.) The Company has grown steadily since our last update despite a few departures; we've added some fine members to our ranks and they've gotten themselves stuck in from the word go which is always an advisable way to join a company! From in character discussions and feedback we've obtained a few tweaks have been made to the way the Blades conduct their jobs. OOCly we've been fiddling with our DM'ing system to work out some quirks that made particular stats rather overpowered or far too situational. We're also in the process of creating our own forums for plotting and archiving purposes; fear not our recruitment process remains entirely IC (With the exception of 2-3 OOC questions) which to our knowledge makes us the only Free Company to do so. As it'll be used for internal purposes only you'll have to join to take a peek at it! Here is to a Happy Halloween & some 2spooky4u events to come! Did you know its only 58 days til' Christmas? :dazed:

Stop pondering, I've never heard someone regret the transfer if they want to RP. [video=youtube]

[align=center]What's Going On?[/align] [align=center] Its been a slightly slower month in the Blades; although you would be forgiven for thinking otherwise! [/align] [align=justify] We've welcomed several new members to our ranks of various origins and abilities, adding a little more variety to the company. Although we are still rather short on the magic users front! For our Storytelling team its my pleasure to announce two new souls have taken up the mantle to support myself; allowing us to the ability to handle higher turnouts or just keep a regular pace going around other commitments! [align=center][/align] The Hovel has received a remodel downstairs in the bar area to take advantage of a few new items and mix things up a little. There is now more space and hideaways for people to come visit us. Which we are never to turn down guests provided we're not out on a job! For other house related things a few new additional shared rooms have appeared for those looking to train or get a good nights rest. On the mechanics front we've begun trialing a new roll / character progression system which from initial events has been a great success. Removing a bit of RNG and letting our members abilities and skills influence their rolls more consistently! Its lightweight and non time consuming system which will be a great asset. [align=center][/align] [align=center]This months main event featured actually three events at the same time. The Blades were divided up into groups and dispatched to three different regions of Eorzea to complete their respective tasks![/align] One group made their way to La Noscea where they involved themselves in some pirates plunder; before meeting an unusual type of adversary in the form of a Zombie Kraken! No less than expected they drove the creature off to complete their task. Although this short summary may not /quite/ give the best idea of the hoops they had to jump through to achieve it! Another group made their way to Eastern Thanalan in the pursuit of abducted Goldsmiths Guild members. With some guile (Or lucky rolls) they talked their way through most of their adversaries before finishing off the rest with their weapons. Rescuing those in the process and taking a hostage to interrogate. And lastly but by no means least. A trio went to the rescue of a Trader locked in a basement beset by voidsent. Overcoming the confusion of the situation and the unusual environment they found themselves in the beast was slain and the man rescued. With considerable bonus added to their reward for a job well done. [Align=center][/align] [align=center]With that; this What's Going On? post is concluded! Exciting times ahead as we go into Autumn. We're looking forward to reaching out to some other Free Companies to involve them in our meddlings. Many thanks to our members and associates who've been active and supportive. Onwards and Upwards![/align] [/align]

Which realm is the biggest role play community on Final Fantasy? Balmung - Although you'll have to pay the transfer fee to get here. The bonus is you pay for 1 transfer and can move as many characters as you want from X to Y so make sure you do that in one go. Even if you don't plan on alts you won't get another chance to make 7 additional characters. Are new players/rp'ers welcomed? Definitely. What's the role playing like? It covers every spectrum and works pretty much like in WoW with /say and /em. You'll find FC's and Linkshells ranging from light hearted maid cafes to dark criminal organisations. Adventuring Companies, Merc Companies, Grand Companies take your pick! Depending on where you come from you might find it a little less serious and darker themed compared to WoW (I did). And most important. How active is the roleplay on this game? Again depending on where you come from on WoW and your faction you might find it a bit underwhelming. There is a lot of roleplay going on 24/7 but compared to WoW it is a lot more FC/Group based rather than open world stuff you easily walk into. Finding a good FC or Linkshell (Chat channel) is a must unless your networking skills are pretty amazing. You'll see lots of people standing about with 'Roleplayer - Walk Ups welcome!' in their searchinfo but they are very rarely in character so expect some frustration if you take the random approach option.

I treat the library as an ongoing pit of death that hasn't changed much since the WoL dived into it, afterall what we see in the dungeon is a pretty straight forward 'run' with not many offshoots or other wings featured and the nature of its guardians implies that without some serious magical involvement they won't stop appearing. Its likely to have several hundred floors and wings considering the implied collection of knowledge there, so any trips done ICly are treated as 'Surgical strikes' into the library itself. Straight to the objective (If they know where it is) and straight back out to avoid being caught up in a clever trap or as I imagine with the whole demonwall thing; bits of the library moving about (or appearing too). To be fair it wouldn't surprise me if the Library did continuously shift, parts of it are likely cloaked but as the magicks protecting it are utilised fending off the constant incursions or even time just taking its toll bits probably appear then disappear. If only they had those handy little 'You are here' desks all over the place to help you navigate!

Welcome!

[align=center]What's Going On?[/align] [align=justify]Last night saw the company undertaking a short notice leve aptly named 'A Void to Behold'! Tasked with recovering an antique casket that had recently been excavated from deep within the Sagolii Desert of Southern Thanalan. Assembling at the Forgotten Springs they received the details of the duty from the Company Master; before heading South following a poorly scribbed map to locate their prize. Arriving to find the piled corpses of the mercenaries who had previously guarded the camp and the second batch to whom had come to investigate the former's disappearance it was soon revealed that a sinister figure was responsible for it all. [/align] [align=center] [/align] [align=center][/align] [align=justify]Sat atop the piled bodies was a Lalafell Necromancer of considerable ability. Swiftly demonstrated as corpses flew like rag-dolls to shield her from blows and with a thrust of her stave into the air the Darkness overtook the area in a dome like creation. From the terrors of the void came Gargoyles clawing their way into reality, fueled by the resonant aether from the masses of freshly killed corpses. Turning their weapons on the emerging voidsent the group quickly put them back to their reality; hacking and slashing them back into the portals they were still emerging from. In the meantime a trio had attempted to attack the Necromancer directly, finding them assailed by flying corpses, crackling bolts of lightning and finally a challenge issued directly by what appeared to be a woman behind the robes and stave.[/align] [align=center][/align] [align=center][/align] They were challenged to fight a construct made from the very casket they were sent to recover, rock twisted and reformed into a human like visage twenty fulms high and the emeralds, rubies and sapphires embedded in the ornate object formed weapons and eyes for the beast. [align=justify]Yet they were undeterred, laying into the construct with vigor before it had even finished forming as it was forced to its knees and onto the defensive from a barrage of attacks both from Knights & Dragoons. Yet it was not bested easily as its weapons swept through the air with unnerving speed, manipulating into a Warhammer and swiping a Dragoon from the sky and almost crushing another. It was during this the bravest, or were they the most foolish? Of the group attempted to assail the Necromancer who was behind a swirling blood shield. Tearing through it only to be met with the hovering weapons of the deceased sellswords waiting for them. One by one the weapons tore through his body whilst others were narrowly deflected by sheer force of will or shields. Alas the Necromancer sat untouched on her throne of bodies. Eventually after some friendly fire and narrow misses however the Construct was bested and the Necromancer allowed them the prize which they sought. In one last show of strength the dead rose around the group as ice bound them in place, a reminder to accept their prize and depart before they faced a much greater threat! [/align] [align=center][/align] Many thanks to those who attended last night! Both FC, Linkshell & Friends! Many thanks to Virella for grabbing much better screens than I too.

So to clarify; Are you looking for a group of people who OOCly accept LGBT players (OCly) or are you looking for a group to roleplay specifically LGBT themes? I think you'll struggle to find on Balmung many people who are not LGBT friendly.

[align=center][/align] [align=center]The Breaker - Broken[/align] [align=justify]And so the Company fell upon the lair of the Corpse Brigade; or rather the ruins just before as they alerted sentries to their arrival. First encountering a Thaumaturge adorned in ornate armour, the group dived in and out of cover as a variety of magicks detonated around them. Fire lashed out at the pillars they sought refuge behind whilst Ice rained down from the sky. Initially their attacks were unsuccessful; having failed to bring any form of ranged combatant to assail their foe, who had positioned himself beyond arms reach until the group took to throwing the masonry itself to dislodge him. Only with him on ground level did he find himself meeting the sharp end of a spear as a tri-pronged head ripped through his body. Yet they were not afforded rest as their target, Leofric known as the 'Breaker of Bones', a Captain of the Corpse Brigade sat waiting for their attention. Throwing caution to the wind one of the group saw it apt to charge; finding himself easily outmaneuvered and tossed about by the Lancer with decades of experience under his belt who promptly punished the reckless action. Moving around him as no less a mirage Leofric inflicted a series of scathing wounds before dashing into the rest of the group. The combat that followed was no less bloody or chaotic; the lancer twisting and turning through almost every member of the party and living true to reasoning behind his declaration as an 'A' Rank Hunt. With almost every strike he appeared to dodge, parry or turn it against his attackers, impaling some on their own weapons or turning what seemed like certain defeat into a punishing series of wounds for his assailants. Attacks did however pass through his guard; surrounded from every side he eventually began to absorb ever increasing amounts of damage before there were simply too many to avoid altogether. Blacking out from an unexpected strike to his head he regained consciousness for long enough to drive his lance through a party member one final time before he met his end. Impaled on the end of a Dragoons lance. A result the Ishgardian's would no doubt of wished for the Autumn war. The victory was Phyrric at best, almost every member of the party lay near dead or wounded yet his head was secured and the hunt complete; a grand reward which some might expect will be spent on medical supplies consequently. [/align] [align=justify]And with that we tie up this months plotline! A memorable event to which the cost in blood was rather high; if anything it was surprising no one died (Although a couple were close!) but either way the job was done and it highlighted a few things we need to work on ICly. What's in store next month then? Well we'll have our next plotline kick off at the end of next week (Hopefully) or maybe a little bit earlier which will take us away from Thanalan and into another region or two for its duration. We're working on a fairly simple combat system to remove the RNG'ness a little bit. We've contemplated instigating maybe the Fate-14 System or similar but at the same time some of our members may not be interested so we've opted on compromise. Watch this space(soonTM). We're also looking at putting together a weekly community event which is more open to the rest of the realm, whilst we love people popping by or running into us during jobs something to give a more regular reason to pop by would be good.[/align] [align=center] So stay tuned; meanwhile recruitment remains open and here is a picture of maybe the next locale? [/align] [align=center][/align]

[align=center][/align] [align=center]What's going on?[/align] [align=justify]After some failed attempts to solicit information by flirting the Company eventually has managed to locate its elusive prey; with a bit of luck their encounter should happen in the near future as all members have been preparing for the final confrontation. What next after that however? Well, one could say the Mythril Blades might be heading to a more 'Seaside' locale for their next job; or perhaps it might be somewhere much further North in the cold snows. Either way as part of our efforts to keep things flowing and people involved our 'Main' plot shifts monthly, keeping us exploring Eorzea and all our members involved. When we've grown a sufficient amount that a singular ongoing quest or hunt has too many people attending to be feasible we'll expand this to two. In other news we appear to be lacking users of aether in the form of Thaumaturges, Conjurers, Arcanists and dare I even say a Black mage possibly? Any of those seeking employment should definitely seek out the Blades as we're in need! Afterall tearing down wards and firing off powerful spells from a distance is something we could really use.[/align] [align=center]So that sums up the most recent update, we look forward to seeing you all about, don't be afraid to pop by![/align]

These days I tend to walkup in open world normally just to prove the point that 90%* of people with it are never actually willing to roleplay with you if you walkup. Although if I were to walk up properly it would be on the basis of an interesting character I'd like to interact with and possibly build a connection; or I'm just really bored and anything goes. Generally I look for characters who are fairly well grounded, I try to avoid looking people up on the RPC or from what I've seen of their text/information aren't really going to match my RP style. I've had some good roleplay from walkups, some really bad too. When it comes to approaching people I don't need a hook though, I just make something up on the spot be it wild or not and run with it.

[align=center]What's going on?[/align] [align=center][/align] [align=justify] The Company continues on their first Hunt in the region of Thanalan, pursuing a lancer of great skill and considerable threat to justify an A rank rating with the Immortal Flames. Several events so far have focused on locating their elusive foe, with the company members left to make all the decisions regarding their approach and how they intend to handle it. This in turn has lead to a few encounters with shady and infulential people alike as they draw ever closer to their target. We've also been involved in the Sea Breeze Bazaar Event to which one of our members was the proprieter, offering up the services of our members to assist in the facilitation of the event which resulted in some great roleplay all round! Although that chat scroll was challenging at times. Thank you for all those who also attended to make it such a great success. Our recruitment continues at a steady pace, with new faces slowly trickling in through into both full membership and linkshell positions for NA and EU timezones. Over the last couple of days we've seen two new faces appear. All without a single application filled out, for those unaware the Mythril Blades has an IC interview and thats all! Fire a tell to Scarlet Heath, Odile Delacroix or Avelyn Firestone ingame. Overall plenty of things to look forward to in the future, especially with our current plotline beginning to expand and present more opportunity for people to shine in. [/align]

Normal people singing? Beyond rousing and inspiring there wouldn't be any actual physical effect on people. A Bard singing? Its confirmed in lore that their songs can boost their companions effectiveness according to the song being sung, be that swifter movement, greater damage or limiting the damage sustained from their foes.

[align=center] What's going on?[/align] [align=justify]The Company finds itself in pursuit of an Ala Mhigan Lancer of old, one who is attracting a large bounty through the Grand Companies 'Hunt' scheme with the possibility of Ala Mhigan loot being nearby. It promises to be a difficult hunt though, elusive and presumably a powerful foe. We've a slow trickle of new faces joining the Company, with a fairly even split between our Associate Members and Full members (Those who join the Linkshell and those who join the FC itself ingame). For those unaware ICly the only difference between the two is if you desire accomodation in the estate. (EG: Dem Mechanics) Activity wise things so far can be expected from around 7pm UTC+1 up until around midnight for the most part, with our American members taking things into the early hours for us EU folk. As our members grow this obviously will shift and change but is expected to remain fairly similar to what it is now. Events are sitting around the 8-9pm mark for start times. A reminder on our application process; the only requirement to join is to pass the in character interview with Odile, Avelyn or Scarlet. Although Scarlet does make sure to meet every new face! This is inclusive for both the Linkshell and FC. [/align]

[align=center][/align] [align=center]Company Report: Watchdogs[/align] [align=justify]Three members of the company ventured out today after taking on a levequest on behalf of the Adventurers guild of Ul'dah. They found themselves requested to locate and eliminate a pack of 'Jackals' which had been attacking trains during their journey from Western Thanalan to the Central Thanalan Depot. Upon arriving at the site of the previous attack it was discovered that there was more of a 'Human' element involved then first suggested. Following the trail they eventually stumbled upon two workmen on the line; despite appearing friendly and well meaning, it was ultimately confusion on behalf of one of their conspirators that they were ousted as a small gang. Calling themselves 'The Jackals' they were mid way through preparations to try their hand at robbing the shortly due train. As the Jackals attempted to flee two found themselves run down or captured whilst a third; at the expense of his comrades made good his escape. No charges could be detonated and during the combat the targeted train passed obliviously by. Handing over the captured Jackal to the Stone Torches of Black Brush Station the trio of Blades collected their reward; gaining an additional bonus as the train in question had been carrying goods on behalf of the Goldsmiths Guild of Ul'dah. [/align] [align=center] A successful Levequest with a few minor scratches to show![/align]

Lol you're kidding me right. A - We've not left yet. B - We're geographically part of Europe. The EU is a political-economical union of states.

Up Nerth (Scotland) Today the Spanish Prime Minister declared that Spain recognises only the United Kingdom as the negotiating body with the EU, as indicated here: Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy has dashed Scottish hopes of retaining EU membership in the case of a British exit from the bloc, insisting that there could be no separate negotiations between Brussels and Edinburgh. “If the United Kingdom leaves [the EU], so does Scotland,” he told a press conference in Brussels on Wednesday as first minister Nicola Sturgeon arrived for talks with Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, reports Tobias Buck in Madrid. “Scotland has no competences to negotiate with the EU. The Spanish government rejects any negotiation with anyone other than the United Kingdom”, said Mr Rajoy, currently acting prime minister of the country. As per the article; this supports the previous comments that Spain will veto any attempt by breakaway states to join the EU in order to prevent a precedent being set to which Catalonia may seek to utilise in their pursuit of independence. Full article: http://www.ft.com/fastft/2016/06/29/rajoy-dashes-scottish-hopes-of-eu-membership/ --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In regards to everything crying impending doom, remember its only been a week and nothing has happened. All the economic issues are from the uncertainty.

I think its less so stalling for time; Cameron doesn't really care anymore from what the media are portraying (Although the media portraying anything is highly dubious anyway) and instead is simply looking to try avoid ruining his 'legacy' as much as possible. Afterall this is the same person who said he would stay on after the referendum regardless of the result; prior to resigning hours after he lost. Its all damage control for the moment before he can slip away and allow someone else to take the hit for the UK's departure. This can be seen in the attitude at the EU dinner he attended this evening, he looks like a man who no longer wants to be there and is just miming the words. On the negotiation front, I do wonder how it will go. Boris Johnson is currently, according to reports the top contender for the Conservative leadership post. If he gets it the widespread expectation will be no deal for the single market due to the restriction on global trade it'll impose and the mandatory Schengen zone. Ultimately it'll be rather clear cut, If we find ourselves with a Europhile Conservative we will end up with the same arrangements but the full shebang (Schengen & Single Market no exceptions for the UK) which will cause relative uproar as ignoring 50% of the countries vote. If we end up with a Eurosceptic Conservative (Which would make sense) we'll end up with no Single Market or Schengen, but instead our way of trade will change wholly with a more global outlook and all interests will be in getting the cheapest tariff with Europe. On Distant Lands So far the countries looking to negotiate or having expressed interest at this stage for trade deals with the UK post Brexit are: New Zealand Australia Ghana United States India Canada

So its been a couple of days and the first meeting of the EU after #Brexit was declared, whats happened? On Negotiations... Its been stated quite clearly now in a motion passed by EU Parliament that there won't be any done until article 50 is declared, they've also made it quite clear (If it wasn't already) they would like the UK to make its declaration soon through an EU motion which passed. There are widespread calls from several states to seek calm rational talks over any negotiations set to occur; not to seek to 'Punish' or 'Revenge' for the Democratic decision of the UK. At the same time however its been made clear that as one would expect, if we want anything we'll have to trade accordingly for it. (Single Market will mean Free Movement of People ect) In li Britannia Our political system is still a mess, the Labour Party is in the midst of a civil war where it is expected within about 1 hour (UTC+1) of this post there will be a declaration of no confidence in the current leader. Meanwhile in the Conservative Party the leadership contest nominees is due to close tomorrow, from which the candidates will be whittled down to two before being voted on. A Second Referendum? In the true spirit of Democracy, there has been, as most are already aware widespread calls of a second referendum citing various reasons. With the looming leadership contest there have been individuals (Jeremy Hunt, the current beloved health secretary) who have cited they will declare a second referendum and the previous null and void if they were to win. Others have also cited making retaining access to the single market their absolute priority; however to do this the UK would have to accept the free movement of people which was a key point in the Leave Campaign which makes this unlikely, but still definitely possible with the current state of chaos in government. On the Rock of Gibraltar Put shortly they are looking to try and negotiate with Brussels for Gibraltar to be excluded from any UK succession from the EU. The success of this is dubious for reasons such as Spain's hotly contested claimed sovereignty of the Rock, current EU law & Scotland. Up Nerth (Scotland) Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister of Scotland has backtracked to a degree by saying she does not intend to call a referendum at this time; merely intending to observe and ensure Scotlands voice is heard in the negotiations to try maintain as much of the EU's benefits for the region as possible. There is a faint whisper they may try to follow Gibraltar's ideal solution, however as per above its dubious. She has also cemented her statement however that IndyRef2 is still an option if she believes it to be in Scotlands best interests. It should however be noted the SNP is the only current faction of the Scottish Parliament suggesting a possible independence referendum. There have been calls by both Labour and Conservative members of the Scottish Parliament to respect the previous referendum not two years ago. For those of you unaware the SNP is currently a minority (By a small amount but none the less a minority) in the Scottish Parliament, meaning they would have to gain more support from other parties to support any motion to Westminster. What do look forward too? Continued uncertainty while the political system sorts itself out; the Stirling to retain its volatile nature for the moment and lots more promises. On a future outlook, the Liberal Democrats current leader has declared that should they be elected to government they will seek to rejoin the EU in their manifesto. Most analysis of this points towards attempting to regain support for the party following their decimation at the previous general election by tapping into the remain supporters pool.

To avoid going against the purpose of this threads creation I'm avoiding responding to anything that may cause a debate to occur. Another update regarding Scottish Independence & the European Union Find below the quote from Mr Van Rompuy (Head of the European Council) in regards to question in Catalonia; which if people are not aware of is a region of Spain seeking independence and an autonomous community currently. "Mr Van Rompuy was answering a question about a proposed referendum in Catalonia. He declined to comment on a specific country, but agreed to set out “some of the principles that would apply in such a scenario.” Speaking at a press conference in Madrid yesterday, he said: “If a part of the territory of a Member State ceases to be a part of that state because that territory becomes a new independent state, the treaties will no longer apply to that territory. “In other words, a new independent state would, by the fact of its independence, become a third country with respect to the Union and the treaties would, from the day of its independence, not apply anymore on its territory.” Any new state could “apply to become a member of the Union” in line with established accession treaties, but “this would be subject to ratification by all Member States and the Applicant State.”" Full article: http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/independent-scotland-would-have-to-reapply-to-eu-1-3232221

The sun rises, its D-Day+1 and the world is still in a bit of shock. I think its worthwhile mentioning a specific point which is the extent of the victory of 'Leave' over 'Remain' and the consequences this holds. Leave: 51.9% Remain:48.1% The closeness of the vote, despite Leave having won the election will play a major role (I foresee) in the negotiation process. Whilst it is indisputable no matter the argument made by individuals wanting a second vote (See European Union Referendum Act 2015) that the UK has voted to leave the European Union; what level of association it may have with the 27 Member bloc as possibly a partner country is up for grabs. (Note: Germany has already stated the UK as an Associated Partner Country is the ideal outcome) The majority of elected members of Parliament (MP) are avid EU supporters and the legislation that will be passed and negotiations that feature with the EU will unmistakably involve their input, considerably. Striking a balance in negotiations that fulfill the desires of both leave and remain will be critical. Could this mean the UK rejoins the Single Market? Possibly, however this would be highly contested as it would again close off the UK's ability to create trade deals externally. A major campaigning point for a 'Global UK' that was used by Leave. Plus the legislation that is cited as red tape stems from the Single Market. (Reality Check: for the UK to continue trading with EU countries our goods still need to meet all European criteria to be traded) Could this mean the UK adopts the free movement of people? (Schengen) The answer to this one is its extremely unlikely. The UK wasn't a full member of Schengen before the referendum and the appetite for it is still non-existent. We in the UK are fairly unanimous that we want border controls maintained. What it could mean however... is that the UK negotiates to maintain its current variation of Schengen. Which means passport controls and checks are still enforced to UK standards however visa free travel ect remain free and open to all European Citizens. (Note, by not being a member of the single market, AFAIK this means the UK would not have to accept the free movement of peoples in relation to work. Which would satisfy the concerns regarding unlimited migration to the UK which was a key point in the campaign.) On Northern Ireland The First Minister for Northern Ireland has already made clear that until both religious elements in Northern Ireland express indisputable desire to join the Republic then a borders vote is out of the question. It is also been stated that hard border controls will be opposed at every turn. To reference the UK maintaining its current variation of Schengen, the Republic of Ireland utilises an /identical/ variation which has always allowed Irish and UK citizens to move back and forth freely, without the need for border controls. I think that point makes the possibility of us maintaining free movement in some movement with the EU Bloc very high. The appetite both by the remain camp and political economical needs is there. On Scotland It is important to recognise that an independent Scotland whilst predominant in the news as a possibility, is a long way off. The SNP must first build a case as to why Scotland, who voted not two years past to remain a member of the United Kingdom suddenly wants to no longer be a member of the United Kingdom because of a UK wide referendum. How does this affect the wider world? Quite simply even if Scotland can make a case and have a referendum approved in Westminster, it'll take around two years for the vote to happen from that date. Then Scotland will depart the Union and have to fend for itself whilst it applies to become a member of the European Union; a lengthy process in itself. All the while the UK will still be recovering and establishing its place once more in the world; whilst Scotland in comparison will be seeing a second coming of current events with very little support. Not to say it won't happen, but its a while off yet. Trade Trade Trade The interest in trade deals is already beginning to come in now the results are out. Canada, the United States and Ghana being the three noted ones at the current time. The TTIP (Proposed trade agreement between the USA and EU) is currently slowing down due to resistance in the EU and its been noted that negotiating a trade deal of some form with the UK alone would be far less time consuming and complex due to a close relationship. There would still be barriers to cross however two countries coming to an agreement rather than 28 is obviously easier. Its a long way off but in the future, depending on whats decided our American and Canadian friends may find buying and selling things the UK gets much cheaper and easier. Maybe travel will get thrown in there too for visa-less. Isn't the UK Currency getting smashed? For those of you with assets in Stirling; or well any currency around the world you'll be well aware of the hit that Brexit has given the world economy. Even Asia was rushing liquid assets into the market to stabilise the situation with damage control worldwide in full effect. The FTSE 100 (UK Stock Exchange) lost significant ground, however the pound rallied past levels it had dropped to in Feburary. The FTSE 100 then closed on a weekly high, 2.4% higher then it was last Friday and the best performance in 4 months. Give it a month or two and the Stirling will be back around its normal levels. A drop in Stirling Value isn't all bad... For those of you wanting to purchase goods in the UK now is the time. With the depreciation in Stirling UK Exports are much more competitive and have seen a boom since the Brexit result. Pharmaceuticals have been making even /more/ profits then usual.

The emphasis was on the fact whilst Scotland did vote 62% to remain a member of the EU, in quite a few regions it was much closer then the SNP would of liked. It certainly wasn't an overwhelming majority of 75%+ of the vote. If this translates into a taste for independence themselves from a union that has existed long before the EU, who knows. Certainly the Scots I work with don't believe it will happen. Until talks get underway and Scotland formally petitions for a second referendum we will have to wait and see. For those of you interested, the BBC have a good interactive map showing remain areas in yellow, leave in blue with breakdowns ect. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/politics/eu_referendum/results Damn, too slow! Lel.

So the latest overview for those of you not following the news in the UK, Our PM has resigned, although his departure won't be until the ruling party conference in October in order to try provide stability and transition to a new PM who will lead the UK in its renegotiation and departure from the EU. He has explicitly stated he will not be activating article 50 himself. Which means it'll be three months until that two year period begins at the earliest. The Leave campaign is certainly not looking to activate article 50 anytime soon; they fully intend to handle as much negotiation and sort the framework of an independent UK before activating anything. In contrast the EU has stated they want the UK to do it as quickly as possible; although they've no ability to force the UK out until it decides. Bare in mind the UK retains its veto and voice in the EU until article 50 is activated; then we lose both. The current timescale being ball parked by the leave campaign is activating article 50 some time in 2018, which would mean we'd leave the EU in 2020. IF this remains the plan who knows. Scotland's SNP (Scottish National Party) is looking to depart the UK and join the EU. The first minister for Scotland fully intends to talk to all the EU countries to try get an idea if they will be able to join if they did leave. Its worth while noting however the UK Referendum is just that, the UK referendum. It wasn't the Scottish/Northern Irish/Welsh/English referendum; will they legally be able to claim a second referendum? Who knows, let alone win it. Despite all of Scotland technically declaring for a remain vote almost every Scottish voting area was within 10%ish of the 50/50 mark. Some of the areas were as little was 0.9% difference between leave/remain having the most votes. Northern Ireland is something too difficult to guess; the history of Northern Ireland will make any attempt to unify the two potentially a very bloody affair. Unionists and Nationalists are both extremely unlikely to yield willingly, especially with only 10%ish of the vote swaying in favour of remain. In my opinion what the UK negotiates with Ireland will decide if this is pursued or not. Hard border controls (passport, customs, immigration ect) will certainly prompt it if implemented, even then expect conflict. Gibraltar has already had its sovereignty reaffirmed by the government which has declared it has no intentions of yielding the rock or entering into any sort of 'sharing' deal with Spain. Not only does it serve as a strategic military position but it also shares a similar feeling with the Falkland Islands, of which Argentina has tried many times (Famously waging war in an attempt) to secure them. The feeling on the rock is very much of rising to the challenge according to the news. At the moment the main priority for everyone is settling down the financial sector and this is being echoed by all financial institutions who are seeking clarity on the economic plan. The Bank of England, IMF and US Banking sector are working hard to stabilise the situation, its worth noting since the last big financial crashes all banks have had to prepare and drill contingency plans for catastrophic circumstances far beyond what we're currently experiencing. Now is the test to see if they pay off in reality. Regarding the call for a second referendum with a higher majority required to leave the EU happening.... The chance of it happening is like soloing Nidhogg EX. Its not going to happen, the political consequences of a second vote would be massive and go against the nature of democracy. It's always been quite clearly stated in the UK that it was a once only affair. TLDR; The UK and its territories are currently wounded and its going to take a helluva lot of healing both politically, financially and among the population as we deal with the fallout. Don't expect any big decisions soon.