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I always play Roanoke and North Carolina off as being completely different individuals. It makes it less complicated and also gives some extra drama to Virginia's story since its settlers were partially charged with trying to find out what happened to those colonists. So I like to think of Virginia as searching for its big brother/sister and never finding out exactly what happened. It also adds a little more drama for when Virginia was like "WTF is this? You're putting another colony there!? >_>" <-- Colonial Virginia really didn't take getting new neighbors very well... XD



I'm pretty sure that's common for all states, though. I can't think of many states who don't/wouldn't build museums to anything relating to their history. I kind of see the ones who might really harp on that sort of stuff are those like Pennsylvania and Massachusetts who like to bring up their roles in the American Revolution or use it in state slogans/stuff.

What I think is really funny about NC is how it made its slogan "First in Flight" even though airplanes were technically Ohio's thing and they just tested it in NC... At least from what I've read. I felt a little bad for Ohio having its thunder stolen by NC. XD

Virginia and NC do seem to eventually become friends and side with each other on a lot of issues in later colonial/statehood years, but Virginia wasn't always a friendly neighbor. During the Tuscarora (sp?) wars when NC asked for help Virginia essentially said "I'll help you... if you agree to my terms about our border dispute... ^_^" so NC went to SC for help. I think the most Virginia did was tell the northern Tuscarora tribes to stay out of it while the Carolinas went to war and just kind of watched from the sidelines as their frontiers got torn up. There was also one of colonial NC's rebellions (I forget which one...) where the NC governor asked for help from Virginia and Virginia marched its militia to the border. NC quickly backed off because fighting Virginia was practically the same as declaring treason plus Virginia was the strongest colony at the time and had no qualms about putting NC in its place.

The colonial history is pretty intense and there are a lot of rivalries we don't really think about today. I love colonial history. <.<; Sorry I kind of started ranting there.

lol I could also go on FOREVER about militia and national guard histories... Short version of the story is NC is actually one of the bamfs of America. XD

I remember reading that technically North Carolina was the last state to really stop fighting the Civil War and there were still several skirmishes after everyone else was like "Ok... war is over..." NC continued to be like "I can take 'em. <_<"

To be honest: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, and the Peninsula of Michigan were all states who really hated the prohibition era and that's how Al Capone rose to power,and if you read the subtle details in between the lines they also had their fair share of mobsters. (Well, all right Wisconsin didn't really so much, but there was a silent agreement in Wisconsin like, "You can stay here as long as you don't start anything don't run us out of business or drag us into your games of power." Admittedly, a few did try, but they were met with a scary mob mentality from the place itself that often had them into the river or something unless that person ran and never came back.) However, Indiana has John Dillinger, Ohio had mobsters, as did Michigan and Minnesota. Wisconsin more or less, was always considered a branch of Illinois' power in that sense showing how much influence the other state had.

It's hard to say if they were really surprised if they were likely in cahoots or competing with them if that many sense. lol They might have shown a surface of outrage or something like that, but it was a case of: "Keep the beer running and we're all good." which was how the mobsters rose to power in the first place. Illinois was a crazy powerful one, not just for Chicago but even some scary mobsters in the country side that knew how to create bombs and more or less blow things up with a plane towards the middle portion of the state.

I'm not even sure if Illinois would come off as naive as more an 'end justifies the means' type, aka after Lincoln they long given up for an honest type coming along again, are frankly no longer surprised at the corruption and expects it. In a sort of "The last person who was honest with me ended up dead." in a way, which brings up a 'tragic' aspect of Illinois in a way? As long as the 'right thing' is done eventually, Illinois probably doesn't care too much unless they do something utterly horrible. (It also brings a nice contrast in my head to Wisconsin has a strong sense of right and wrong, idealism, truth, justice to the point of being downright not in reality and ignoring the bad for a comforting half truth while Illinois has no problem bending those rules and seeing shades of gray.)

I would also think Illinois has a chip on it's shoulder too, to California and New York having a superiority/inferiority complex going on to them that they would never admit. But he's still very social and a decent enough guy to hang around with, it's just he's an utter jackass at times. They'd also have an impressive amount of guff and swag to boot.



I always assumed North Carolina would be rather quiet compared to their neighbors, thoughtful, a bit of a badass when it came down to it (just look at how it does in wars man) and having an air of pride on some level of their history and culture if that makes sense. This isn't saying they aren't talkative, they're just polite and often wait their turn to speak compared to South Carolina who is in comparison more vocal for better or worse.

So I definitely think it's proud of it's history, and so on. I definitely think North Carolina and Virginia both have a hilarious relationship going on, Virginia helping it, North Carolina saying it didn't need it but still appreciating it all the same in a weird way and having some level of attachment to Virginia all the same, wanting it's attention. However it is often the voice of sensibility on some levels now days when it comes to the south, but you still on principle shouldn't make the state angry. Because well -- North Carolina is pretty patient but they have their limits. lol

Honestly, I can sincerely say I am not surprised if Illinois did that just because of what it did up to the Civil War and in the Civil War in general. From what I studied about it, it at first had some sympathy towards the slave states, then it slipped into a harsh judgment overall and proving it's loyalty to the Union in the end. Which in part, I think was Lincoln's doing, but I think there was doubting in Lincoln that slowly disappeared until the Civil War was actually over. Then it was like, Illinois believed actual hope and -- well. We know how that went. Afterward, it was kind of "who cares if they're corrupt, as long as they get things done."

It's actually interesting to see how -- Illinois rather sympathetic view of the southern slave states literally changed after that happening. But that's a whole other topic in my opinion, I got an amazing design for Illinois in my head but I don't want to play states right next to each other like Wisconsin and Illinois. sweatdrop

I actually do play an Illinois in my game, but for a bit it was co-played for a bit with another person. Thus the inspiration in a way, however Wisconsin and Illinois don't get along at all. The way I can avoid interaction with them or not godmode in any shape or form, is by having them not meet each other at all, and make them not stand each other's company.

I'm actually relatively proud of how I designed the Illinois with historical aspects mixed with present time, A reason why I probably don't bring Wisconsin and Illinois near each other, is because they react to each other like this due to historical/economic/geographical/many reasons in general.

To be honest, it'd be more like a drunken bar fight, them getting along at first then suddenly a brick being thrown and someone running after the other with a broom, and everything else. It's almost comical of the loathing they have of each other. That being said, their dislike of each other is mutual, but they realize they sometimes have to work together -- they just don't like each other. (Illinois is actually the milder in dislike, Wisconsin though - for historical reasons has an intense one.)

As for Illinois: I'm not sure if they would be 'siblings' or even think of themselves as such due to the sheer distance between them, however I do think France often basically put them together in a -- YOU TWO. INTERACT. DO STUFF. So they might have been been aware of each other, but due to geographic regions, eventually the collapse in connections due to the fur-trade, the Northwest Territory (Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois) was won in the French and Indian War, they likely lost contact for obvious reasons and similarities in result.

It's more of what happened to them after the Civil War, Illinois was extremely ambitious as a state and Wisconsin in a way was a personal servant as a piece of perspective. A lot of the reasons why Chicago burst the way it did was due to the insane amount of resources they were getting from Wisconsin. This also meant there was a large economic difference by far from the two states too along side with Wisconsin was pretty much constantly working, almost breaking it's obvious limit from mining, trees, and so on. Eventually an excessively dry season hit. Eventually October 8, 1871 hit -- The Great Fire in Chicago. But north of it -- there was another fire. Orders where by Illinois to help the Chicago Fire, of course they went to rush to their aid with majority of the supplies.

Not exactly the same with the fire north of it which took 2,400+ people and who knows how many more in the aftermath from sheer damage. The basic reaction to hearing about the Peshitgo Fire was side comments along the lines of how stupid the state of Wisconsin was for not helping it's own people and having the gall to divert attention to itself, basically insulting the state in a sort of, "Well you should of helped yourself first instead of me, now get over it." Least to say, from then on the relationship soured, not only because of that tragedy but due to class issues, ignoring the problems in the state, often the fact that the people in Wisconsin even then continued to bring supplies there for little in return, and so on.

That being said, it was leading up to that point as it was, and if it wasn't that it probably would have been something else. The following years after that just hammered it home.

WIsconsin's condition was pretty horrible overall though, like most states but it was horrible enough to create a 'revolution' of sorts in the state with the Progressive Movement/Socialist Movement, so this can give you a picture of how bad shape it was actually in from After the Civil War to the 1900s. The condition was bad enough that it produced La Follette, who fought for decent treatment of people and always had Wisconsin first and foremost in mind just to what he saw the people go through. Not necessarily from that fire, but just how many accidents, tragedies, little pay and so on were going through until he finally got to power officially. In result, it ... makes Wisconsin actually see La Follette in reality, almost more like a messiah or a legend, than an actual man who was striving to do good for his people for the love his country and most of all his state. So in a way, it's an interesting contrast is between Illinois and Wisconsin in result, in a way are the people who made a big impact on them - for Illinois and Lincoln while with Wisconsin with La Follette. Both states if you historically look at it - mourned greatly at their losses, and both handled the aftermath vastly in different ways due to different circumstances.

However there is still an unconscious mentality that Illinois is rich, spending money to take away what is theirs, and so on when in reality Illinois suffered from a similar situations - it's just Wisconsin only sees a one sided perspective because it is a giant vacation spot for Illinois. (and still is) In result, Wisconsin lashes out the only way it can lash out: passive aggressively majority of the time, and aggressively if they're together by themselves. Least to say, when Illinois says things like "get over it" - it just makes it worse, because they said it too soon originally in the first place when tragedy happened.

Basically, it leads down to a ton of things that grew over time but comes down to something that happens when you read between the lines, the papers at the time, letters, and so on. It was actually probably even happening during the Civil War, but at the time they were focused on a common enemy.

Mind you the relationship has got better, but you get Wisconsinites and from Illinois together, they'll probably revert to fighting, but just not as bad they probably would have done years ago. It's kind of the mutual dislike between MIssouri and Kansas.



I personally think cousins that meet each other a lot would be actually a better feeling about it, along the lines, they hung out a lot when they were kids and eventually just lost contact with each other for obvious reasons. It also is more of an issue that Illinois never really 'grew' in the western portion of the state, and always had it's problems towards the southern portion of it due to ambitions, so there was really no way they could really reconnect in that sense. It could be played right though if it was a showing of a gradual detachment towards each other in historical roleplay or something like that.