State
A state is a roleplay governmental body that controls more than one town, city, or province on the server. Generally on the MRT, a state could refer to either a group of towns/cities controlled by the same person such as the City-State of Kitania or a political organization which multiple independently owned towns can be a part of, such as Storalia. Generally, the word state when used on the MRT server refers to the former case. All text beyond this point is for roleplay purposes and should not be taken as official information about rules regarding towns and cities on the MRT.
Territories of states are considered to be under both the jurisdiction of the state and the MRT, and states provide for a centralized source of power for different cities owned by the same mayor. Cities controlled by a state may or may not have a local government which is subordinate to the state. Usually in intercity governmental organizations, a city which is under the jurisdiction of a state is not directly represented, rather the state which controls it is represented (ie: in the League of Cities, the cities of Nippia, Zaquar, etc were not directly represented, but were represented under the City-State of Kitania).
Structure
Each state has its own unique distinctions, but all share common characteristics. First of all, a state is a centralized government body which governs more than one city. As such, each city it controls is not "independent" (where the definition of "independent" does not include independence from the MRT). A state exercises the same independence as an independent city.
The governmental structure of a state widely varies. Most are split up into different government agencies which are responsible for different areas of government. For example, the Kitania Transit Authority, Kitania Intelligence Agency, and Kitania Diplomatic Commission are agencies of the government of the City-State of Kitania, and The Royal Guard, The Royal Transport Commission, and The Royal Safety Committee are agencies of The Royal Ferry Monarchy.
Sometimes the cities controlled by a state may have their own local government, which falls under the authority of the state which controls it. For example, the Nippia Department of Justice is an agency of the local government of Nippia, which is a province of the City-State of Kitania. In other cases, cities controlled by a state have no local government, and all aspects of government are controlled by the centralized government of the state.
Independent cities may also govern non-independent cities as territories. In these cases, the city acts as its own "state".
Intercity & Interstate Relations
As far as relations with other cities and states are concerned, a state acts in the same way as an independent city. The non-independent cities under the state's jurisdiction usually do not maintain independent relations with other cities and states, but are dually represented by the state. In intergovernmental organizations, states similarly are represented as the government body in the organization, rather than the state's non-independent cities.
Notable Examples
The following are notable examples of states on the server:
City-State of Kitania
The City-State of Kitania helped to pioneer the idea of a state. Originally, the city of Kitania, for which it is named, was an independent city, which had some other cities as territories. When the new world opened, this governmental structure was completely reorganized, creating the modern centralized City-State of Kitania, which controlled Nippia, Kitania, and several other cities. Its government is a totalitarian dictatorship with a pseudo-democracy which is structured to maintain the current political power.
The City-State of Kitania has 14 central government agencies. These include the Kitania Transit Authority, responsible for public transportation, the Kitania Intelligence Agency, responsible for security, defense, intelligence, and law enforcement, the Kitania Diplomatic Commission, responsible for relations with other cities and states, and more.
The City-State of Kitania classifies two types of territories: provinces and occupied territories. Provinces have their own local governments, which have their own local government agencies. Occupied territories do not have their own local government and are under direct City-State administration.
The City-State of Kitania includes the provinces of Nippia, Kitania, Zaquar, Zicronia, and Llamapolis, and the occupied territories of Hillside-Pagoda, Kitanian Elecna Bay, and Kitania Lacledic Territory. Nippia acts as the capital of the City-State of Kitania.
Storalia
Storalia is another example of a state, which acts more as a federation between different cities. It is notable for having elections for political parties to be considered the "ruling party" of the state.
Storalia has 7 government programs, which include the Storalian Transportation Authority, responsible for public transportation, the Storalian Broadcasting Corportation, responsible for radio broadcasting, the Storalian Population Census, which keeps records of the state's population, and more.
Storalia includes the the city-counties of Storalisburg, Spring Valley, and Glenbrook, and the overseas territory of Foxtrot. Storalisburg acts as the capital of Storalia.
The Royal Ferry Monarchy
The Royal Ferry Monarchy resulted of the restructuring of the previously independent city of Royal Ferry to be governed by a centralized state. The Royal Ferry Monarchy is a monarchy with a permanent leader.
The Royal Ferry Monarchy has 6 ministries, which include The Royal Guard, responsible for security, defense, and law enforcement, The Royal Transport Committee, responsible for public transportation, The Royal Mint, responsible for printing currency, and more.
The Royal Ferry Monarchy classifies three types of territories: major territories, colonies, and artifacts.
The Royal Ferry Monarchy includes the major territories of Royal Ferry, Mikeland, and the Isle of Friel, the colonies of Redlin, Oakley, and the state's Lacledic exclave, and the artifact of Arendale. Royal Ferry acts as the capital of The Royal Ferry Monarchy.