Help Guide
What Is This?
The Alexandrian Conclave Simulator runs collaborative elections for the Autocephalous Nazarene Church of Alexandria. A Game Master (GM) sets up the conclave, defines nations and candidates, and controls the simulation engine. Players (nation controllers) log in and allocate their cardinals' votes across candidates.
If no candidate reaches the required threshold, another ballot is held until someone wins.
For Players
How to Vote
- Go to the landing page and click Vote next to the active conclave.
- Select your nation from the dropdown.
- Enter your secret code (provided by the GM).
- Enter your username (your Discord or wiki name).
- Click Authenticate.
- Use the +/− buttons to allocate your cardinals among the candidates. The total must exactly match your nation's cardinal count.
- Click Submit Votes. Save the receipt code you receive.
Ideology Scale
| Score | Label |
|---|---|
| 1 | Conservative |
| 2 | Moderate-Conservative |
| 3 | Centrist |
| 4 | Moderate-Progressive |
| 5 | Progressive |
Verifying Your Vote
Go to Verify Vote in the top navigation. Enter your receipt code. The system shows:
- Which conclave, nation, and ballot your vote belongs to
- Who submitted it and when
- The exact cardinal allocation per candidate
- Whether the GM modified your vote after submission
Filing a Dispute
If the GM overrode your vote and you believe it was incorrect:
- Go to Verify Vote and enter your receipt code.
- If a GM override is detected, click File a Dispute.
- Enter your username and explain why the override was incorrect.
- Submit the dispute. The GM will review it and accept or reject it with an explanation.
Checking Results
The Results page for any conclave shows:
- Vote totals per candidate (GM votes vs. player votes)
- Vote shifts between ballots (who gained or lost support)
- Visual progress bars toward the threshold
- Nation-by-nation breakdown of how each nation voted
- Trend charts across multiple ballots
Results are only visible after the GM publishes them.
Audit Log
The Audit Log shows all voting activity for a conclave: player submissions, GM entries, overrides, and dispute resolutions. Everything is permanently logged.
For the Game Master
Running a Conclave: Step by Step
Step 1: Create the Conclave
Go to GM Dashboard → Create New Conclave. Enter a name, set the total cardinal count (default: 107), and set the winning threshold (default: 66.67%, two-thirds majority).
Step 2: Add Nations
Go to Manage Nations. For each nation, set the name, cardinal count, controller username, and whether it's GM-controlled. The total cardinals across all nations should match the conclave total.
Each player-controlled nation gets a secret code. Share each code privately with that player.
Name, Cardinals, Controller, GM (yes/no)
Step 3: Add Candidates
Go to Manage Candidates. Enter each candidate's name, age, position, backing nation, ideology (1–5), and platform text. Set status to Confirmed to place them on the ballot. Use Confirm All Nominated to confirm in bulk.
Step 4: Create Factions
Go to Manage Factions. Factions define how GM-controlled cardinals vote in the simulation. For each faction, set a name, associated nation, cardinal count, ideology score, and priority issues with weights (1–10).
Step 5: Open a Ballot
From the dashboard, click Open Ballot 1. Requires at least 2 confirmed candidates and 1 nation. Players can now submit votes.
Step 6: Collect Votes
Votes come from three sources:
- Players log in and submit their allocations
- GM Manual Entry — go to Enter Votes to enter votes for any nation
- Simulation — go to Run Simulation to auto-generate votes for GM-controlled nations
Step 7: Close the Ballot
Click Close Ballot on the dashboard. No more votes can be submitted.
Step 8: Publish Results
Click Publish Results to make ballot results visible to players.
Step 9: Next Ballot or Conclude
- No winner: Click Open Next Ballot to start another round. The simulation factors in momentum from the previous ballot.
- Winner elected: Click Conclude Conclave to end the event.
Using the Simulation Engine
- Go to Run Simulation from the dashboard.
- Optionally add events (narrative modifiers that boost or penalize specific candidates).
- Click Run Preview to see projected results without saving anything.
- Review the affinity matrix (how much each faction favors each candidate).
- Review the vote distribution (projected cardinal allocations per faction).
- Optionally add tweaks (± adjustments to specific candidates).
- Click Apply Simulation Results to save the votes to the database.
Exporting to Wiki
Go to Export Wiki to generate MediaWiki markup tables. You get:
- Results tables — vote totals per ballot with shift commentary
- Nation breakdown — how each nation voted per ballot
Click Copy to Clipboard and paste into your wiki article.
Templates
Save a conclave's setup as a reusable template from the Templates page. Templates store nations, candidates, and factions. They do not store votes, ballots, or audit logs.
Other GM Features
- Per-conclave passwords: Set a unique GM password for each conclave in Settings.
- Delete conclave: Only available during the nomination phase (before voting starts).
- Dispute management: Review and resolve player disputes from the Disputes page.
How the Simulation Works
The simulation determines how GM-controlled cardinals vote using five factors:
1. Ideology Match
Each faction and candidate has an ideology score (1–5). The closer they are, the higher the affinity. A perfect match scores 100. Opposite ends of the spectrum (difference of 4) score only 20.
2. Priority Bonuses
If a faction cares about specific issues and a candidate's platform addresses those issues in a compatible way, the faction gets a bonus. Opposed positions result in a penalty.
3. Momentum
After the first ballot, candidates who gained votes get a momentum boost. Candidates who lost votes get penalized. This creates a realistic bandwagon effect across ballots.
4. Events
The GM can add narrative events that directly boost or penalize specific candidates. For example, a scandal could penalize a candidate across all factions.
5. Random Variance
Each cardinal gets a small random adjustment (±10 points) to prevent identical voting within a faction. The randomness is seeded, so the same seed always produces the same results.
Reference Tables
Default Settings
| Setting | Default | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Total Cardinals | 107 | Number of voting cardinals |
| Threshold | 66.67% | Votes needed to win (two-thirds) |
| Ideology Weight | 20 | Affinity lost per ideology point of difference |
| Momentum Weight | 15 | Multiplier for vote momentum between ballots |
| Random Variance | 10 | ± randomness per cardinal |
Audit Log Action Types
| Action | Meaning |
|---|---|
| SUBMIT | Player submitted their initial vote |
| EDIT | Player changed their previously submitted vote |
| GM_ENTRY | GM entered votes on behalf of a nation |
| GM_OVERRIDE | GM modified a player's existing vote |
Dispute Statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Open | Dispute filed, awaiting GM review |
| Resolved | GM accepted the dispute |
| Rejected | GM rejected the dispute (with explanation) |
FAQ & Troubleshooting
Player Questions
I lost my secret code. How do I vote?
Contact the GM running your conclave. They can see your nation's secret code on the Nations management page and send it to you, or regenerate a new one.
Can I change my vote after submitting?
Yes. You can resubmit your vote as many times as you want while the ballot is open. Each new submission replaces your previous one. Your receipt code will change with each submission.
What does "GM override" mean on my vote?
The GM entered or adjusted votes on your behalf. This might happen if you couldn't access the tool, or if the GM is running GM-controlled nations. You can file a dispute from the vote page if you believe the override was in error.
I see "No ballot is currently open for voting." What do I do?
The GM hasn't opened a ballot yet, or the current ballot has already been closed. Wait for the GM to advance the conclave to the next ballot round.
My receipt code doesn't verify. Is my vote lost?
Receipt codes change when you resubmit a vote or the GM overrides your allocation. Use your most recent receipt code. If you've lost it, contact the GM — your vote is still recorded in the system.
I'm locked out after too many failed login attempts.
Wait for the lockout timer to expire (shown in the error message). Double-check that you're selecting the correct nation and entering the right secret code. If you've lost your code, contact the GM.
GM Questions
How do I delete a conclave?
Click "Delete Conclave" in Quick Actions on the GM Dashboard. You'll need to type the conclave name exactly to confirm. This permanently removes the conclave and all associated data.
Why do I get the same simulation results every time?
Simulations are deterministic by design — the same random seed and the same event list will always produce the same vote totals. To get different outcomes, change the random seed on the simulation page before running a preview.
The faction cardinal count doesn't match the total.
Each faction uses its own cardinal count for internal allocation. If a faction's cardinal count differs from the nation's total, the simulation scales votes proportionally. Check the Nations and Factions pages to make sure the numbers are consistent with your intent.
Can I run a conclave where only players vote (no simulation)?
Yes. Don't create any factions and skip the simulation step. Open a ballot, let players vote directly, then close the ballot. The results page will show only player-submitted votes.
Can I add candidates after voting has started?
No. Candidates are locked once the conclave moves to the scrutiny phase. Add all candidates during the nomination phase. You can still edit non-gameplay fields (name, position, backing nation) during voting.
What happens to a withdrawn candidate's votes?
When a candidate withdraws, their existing votes remain in previous ballot results (for the historical record). In future ballots, the simulation will not allocate new votes to them. If the candidate endorsed someone, the endorsed candidate receives an affinity boost worth approximately 70% of the withdrawn candidate's prior vote total.