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DispatchMetaReference

by New fakeland. . 176 reads.

Flag Rating (I am now retired)

New Fakeland has rated many flags in its time, and in this FactBook, I'll explain my rating system, and list some of my past ratings.

Also, check out some of the flags by The Queer Pirate Endorsing OT of Fujai by clicking >>here<<

Rating system

Each category has a rating out of 5 stars (e.g. ★★★★☆), and should be taken as just my opinion, rather than some sort of scientifically based analysis.


Uniqueness:
A gauge of how recognisable a flag is, and how distinguishable it is from other flags, both real, and from NationStates.

Design:
How well the flag is designed in terms of the flag elements, their shape, size, position and spacing.

Colour scheme:
How good the colours look individually, how well adjacent colours contrast, and how good the overall colour scheme of the flag is.

Simplicity:
With a view of simple=good, over complex=bad. Relevance to both the number of flag elements (fewer=better) and simplicity of elements.

Meaning:
Perhaps the trickiest and most fun category.
Here, I try to guess what a nation is like from the flag, from things such as colour, shapes/key elements, how the key elements relate to each other, and other stuff.
How accurate my rating in this category is, can only be confirmed by the nation being judged, so I rate this category with stars and questionmarks (e.g. ★★★??) with the number of stars representing a combination of my confidence in guessing the meaning, and how many points should be awarder if my guess was correct.

Overall rating:
This is just a rounded off average of the other ratings combines.

Fakeland's basic guide to rating flags

This isn't how I actually rate flags, but that would take a lot longer to put into words and write down

Uniqueness:
Using a default NationStates flag (or any real world country flag): ★☆☆☆☆
Making only a small alteration to a real country flag, or using an unaltered well known flag or symbol: ★★☆☆☆
Using common flag elements, but not bearing little resemblance to existing flags: ★★★☆☆
Using uncommon flag elements, or common flag elements in an uncommon way: ★★★★☆
Using uncommon flag elements in an uncommon way: ★★★★★

Lose 1★ if over complexity, or low colour contrast significantly reduces flag recognisability are low resolution or size.

Design:
Start with 5★
-1★ for poor alignment (i.e. elements appear to have been placed randomly, and don't align with other elements, or fraction of the flag (e.g. centred)).
-1★ for insufficient margin between non-overlapping elements, or edge of flag
-1★ if overlapping elements are unclear and indistinguishable
-1★ if elements are not so big that parts of them go off the edge of the flag, or so small that their absence wouldn't be missed
-1★ for no elements, or faaaaar too many (like, 20+)

Colour scheme:
If it's actually a picture: ★☆☆☆☆
Otherwise, start with 5★
-1★ if 2 or more colours are similar/somewhat indistinguishable
-1★ if 2 or more clashing colours are next to eachother
-1★ for using ugly colours
-1★ for using too many colours (about half a dozen-ish), or too few (i.e. 2 or less)

Simplicity:
Count the number of elements in a flag, somewhat complex elements count as 2, very complex elements count as 4. Each "split" in a background counts as an element too. Multiple colours on a single element increase its point by 1 per colour.
Score of 1-5: ★★★★★
Score of 6-15: ★★★★☆
Score of 16-50: ★★★☆☆
Score of 50-200: ★★☆☆☆
Score of 200+, and pictures: ★☆☆☆☆

Meaning:
?????

Overall rating:
Add first 4 ratings, and divide by 4, then round it up if lower than 3, or down if higher than 3 (e.g:
a score of 2,2,1,2 adds to 7, which becomes 1.75, which is rounded up to 2★
a score of 2,4,3,2 adds to 11, which becomes 2.75, which is rounded up to 3★
a score of 4,4,3,4 adds to 15, which becomes 3.75, which is rounded down to 3★
a score of 4,4,4,4 adds to 16, which becomes 4, which is rounded down to 4★

Flag Ratings


2016/10/01- Flag rating for Desadrad's old flag
(image for this flag has been lost)

★★★★☆ - Uniqueness: The flag is easily distinguishable from other flags, even at low resolution, but no original elements to flag.
★★★★☆ - Design: Good general design, nothing messy, good spacing and layout.
★★☆☆☆ - Colour scheme: The bright yellow looks a tad garish, and slightly clashes with the other colours.
★☆☆☆☆ - Simplicity: This flag is far too complex. There are both too many colours, and too much imagery.
★★★?? - - Meaning: While I don't know the history of your nation, the flag seems to indicate that your nation was a former British colony or such (from the Union Jack), is a monarchy (from the crown on the coat of arms), and is located in Africa (from the leopards, and leaves, but the cats may just as easily be jaguars, and the leaves I'm even less sure about). So if this is all correct, then 5★ for meaning, and if none of it is correct, then 0★, unless there was some meaning that I missed (e.g. maybe the yellow symbolises the yellow mountains in your country or something).

So overall, I give it a rating of: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:

Desadrad wrote:Thanks! I really didn't expect this. It was a British colony and it is based in Somalia. (the coat of arms is actually Somali, but I just redid the middle bit) The yellow symbolizes the desert and prosperity.


2016/10/02- Flag rating for Lordren

★★★★☆ - Uniqueness: The flag is easily distinguishable from other flags. At low resolution however, the ring becomes less clear, and it looks like a black square with a few random orange bits on it, or just a completely black square.
★★★☆☆ - Design: Clear design. Not enough padding though (the flame is going over the edge of the top and bottom of the flag).
★★★★☆ - Colour scheme: Good. Colours clear and contrasting, but not clashing.
★★★☆☆ - Simplicity: A good simplicity of design by having one core element, however, that element itself is rather complex.
★???? - - Meaning: I'm getting almost no indication of what your nation is like from the flag. The fire and darkness may indicate a hint of sinisterism. Perhaps maybe some religious/mythic symbolism with the fire too.

Overall rating: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:

Lordren wrote:Wow! I got a better rating than I was expecting! You're spot on with the meaning, tho, very good guess just from the symbol.


2016/10/02- Flag rating for Gibalta

★★★☆☆ - Uniqueness: The elements of your flag individually are not original, but have been combined in a way that is. At low resolutions however, the central eagle-symbol can't be made out.
★★★☆☆ - Design: Centralising of elements makes for a clear, no-mess design, however, overlaying too many multiple elements can cause unnecessary obscurity. It also seems that the eagle is the core element of the flag from its complexity, but its small size compared with the other elements does not reflect this.
★★★★☆ - Colour scheme: The colours are rich and contrasting, however, the fasces (wood-axe bundle) being the same colour as the eagle, makes them difficult to discern.
★★★☆☆ - Simplicity: Only the central item (the eagle and fasces), are overly complex.
★★★★? - - Meaning: Unless I'm very much mistaken, your nation has as strong influence from Nazi Germany, and possibly some influence from the Roman Empire too (although, that in turn influenced Nazi Germany). The rich red and gold, and the eagle, all indicate power/strength, perhaps a bit of self-righteousness too.

Overall rating: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:

Gibalta wrote:You got its meaning pretty on-spot.


2016/10/02- Flag rating for Psycho empire
*Note: The flag that was rated isn't the one below, but a former version which had a much darker blue.

★★★★★ - Uniqueness: This flag is both original, and has very clear elements, making it easily distinguishable from other flags, even at low resolution.
★★★★★ - Design: Very clear design. Size, position, and spacing of main elements is all excellent.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: Good. The distinction between the black and blue of the background is a tad too subtle, and the metallic shading of the core elements increases the colour complexity.
★★★☆☆ - Simplicity: A good simplicity of design by having few core elements and a simple background. One of the core elements (the bull head) is moderately complex though.
★★??? - - Meaning: I don't know your nation, but I would say that your flag indicates that it is one that greatly values strength and power (from the bullhead, stars, and metallic colour). The background indicates a dark streak, but the light-coloured stars indicate that your nation believes itself to be righteous in some way. From your flag, I'd say your nation seems somewhat similar to the USA, a dark Texas perhaps.

Overall rating: ★★★★☆

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Nation's comment after rating:

Gibalta wrote:You got its meaning pretty on-spot.


2016/10/04- Flag rating for The Scᴀɴᴅıɳᴀvıᴀɴ Uɴıoɴ of The Dark Norse

★★☆☆☆ - Uniqueness: This flag is very similar to the Danish flag, and although the colouring is different enough for people who know their flags to notice the difference, those with limited flag knowledge may confuse it with other real-world flags with the Nordic cross.
★★☆☆☆ - Design: Unless there was some sort of amazing coincidence, I'm guessing you based your design on existing Nordic flags, so not many points here for you. Having 3 different colours for the overlapping crosses (or cross border) is something I haven't seen on other Nordic flags, but as the lines are thin, it's not that noticeable.
★★★★☆ - Colour scheme: The colours are generally good and clear, I particularly like the shade of red, and how it darkens towards the edges. However, because of the thinness of the dark-blue/green, it appears that there is a border between the yellow-white, but not between the white-red.
★★★☆☆ - Simplicity: Both the extra overlapped cross, and the colour shading add a degree of complexity to this flag.
★★★?? - - Meaning: Clearly a Nordic region, from the Nordic cross, and while the Nordic cross is a Christian symbol, the rich earthy red of the flag, and dark shading seem to tell a different story. The dark-red background indicates a "dark" nation, but I can't seem to discern any meaning from the foreground colours. Perhaps the colours represent the white snowy mountains, the yellow fields of barley, and the blue rives, of your nation... but I doubt it, and expect the cross is coloured from other Nordic flags.

Overall rating: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:
No comment, but a "like" of the rating


2016/10/04- Flag rating for The Ferrum Nation of Illand

★★★☆☆ - Uniqueness: While I haven't seen any other flags at all similar to your flag, and the flag is still easily recognisable at very small size, you lose points here because it's not actually your flag (for those that don't know, it's from the computer game "Halo"), so potentially anyone could use it.
★★★★☆ - Design: A small number of fairly simple shapes, with a common line of curve flowing throughout. The edges of some of the white shapes come up against the edge of the flag though, so a small amount of edge padding would remove the suspicion of shapes overflowing off the edge of the flag.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: While there are no major issues caused by a black-white colour scheme, it can lack the depth of a richer, and/or more varied colour scheme.
★★★☆☆ - Simplicity: The overall structure is simple and easy to understand, but as you look at the shapes more closely, you notice that some of the nice smooth lines are actually slightly jagged. The inner rings around the central circle also seem somewhat unnecessary, as they don't contribute much to the overall superstructure of the imagery.
★★??? - - Meaning: Putting aside the obvious meaning, that you like Halo, the combination of straight lines and curvature, perhaps even the small irregularities in the shapes too, seems to be geometrically and aesthetically pleasing in such a way that invokes thoughts of advanced technology. There is also a balance between the light and dark of the flag, with neither seeming to dominate the other, so I would guess your nation has a good balance between freedom and order, and perhaps in other things too. As for what the shapes themselves mean, the outer white shapes appear somewhat hand-like, either reaching for the central orb, or holding it aloft. Perhaps your nation is striving towards something (e.g. science), or holds it in high regard. If however, we consider the flag to be a black object on a white background, it appears to be a window or gateway in silhouette, leading to a brighter future perhaps. Whatever the case, it seems to be a nation making progress towards the future.

Overall rating: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:

Illand wrote:Seems accurate!


2016/10/06- Flag rating for The Iron Legion of The Iron Rebel

★★★☆☆ - Uniqueness: Both the Nordic cross, and the Saltire (the x-cross) are fairly common flag symbols, and although combination of crosses isn't as common, it is something that is occasionally seen.
(I was also going to say that your flag looks similar to the flag of The Iron Rebel, but then I noticed that was because it IS the flag of The Iron Rebel :P )
★★★☆☆ - Design: You usually can't go wrong with crosses on flags, but they're not very exciting either.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: The white is fine, but there is little contrast between the two shades of blue.
★★★★☆ - Simplicity: Good and simple, nuff said.
★★★?? - - Meaning: The colour scheme has a cold feeling to it, with the white background possibly representing snow, or, if the blue is the background, then the while triangles looking like icicles, which makes me think your country is in a rather cold climate, with a lot of coast too, if the blue of the flag represents water. Ignoring the Christian symbolism, the crosses seem to converge slightly left of centre, maybe your country is slightly unbalanced, or politically left leaning (though some would consider both to be the same).

Overall rating: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:
Soon I will make a new flag!


2016/10/07- Flag rating for Icgi

★★★☆☆ - Uniqueness: While I haven't seen a flag like this before, and the colour is unique, it would nonetheless be difficult to distinguish with similar flags due to the low contrast between colours, and numerous small elements, and even more so at low resolutions.
★★☆☆☆ - Design: There doesn't seem to be very little consistency in positioning and spacing of elements. There should be more space between the central 3 elements, the space to the bottom of the flag should be the same for the blue tree and the green person, the star in the corner should be bigger and/or more clear, and the tree branches should be thicker.
★★☆☆☆ - Colour scheme: There's a somewhat unpleasant clash of colours, particularly the blue and green against the orange. This could be resolved by darkening or lightening the background orange, or darkening the foreground elements. There also seems to be no colour coordination.
★★★☆☆ - Simplicity: There aren't too many elements, and apart from the tree and star, they are not that complex.
★★??? - - Meaning: Not too sure about this one. From the bright colours, I'd guess you're a happy nation, but the black crown (I presume it's a crown) seems to suggest a perhaps overbearing monarchy. The green person perhaps represents a fondness for the environment, but the blue tree looks cold and dead, which seems to contradict this.

Overall rating: ★★☆☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:

Automutus wrote:Ok thanks! (Icgi is my alt...) i will improve it as it wasnt well planned and was quickly cobbled together.
A few things tho:
The tree was LEFT LEANING, like icgi.
The star was just symbolism
The crown was sopposed to mean goverment, and the two lines meaning equal to the people.
But thanks for the rating!


2016/10/07- Flag rating for Mendelian conglomerate

★★★★☆ - Uniqueness: All the elements of your flag are uncommon, even the upper and lower border spacing is rarely seen. At low resolutions though, the white outlining of the flag elements cannot be seen, and edges loose their sharpness, particularly as the two main colours of your flag are somewhat similar-ish, but nonetheless, it's still recognisable.
★★★★★ - Design: The shape, sizing, and position of all the elements is pretty much perfect.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: I feel that there is not enough contrast between the colours of your flag, and perhaps one of the colours could be made richer to achieve this.
★★★★☆ - Simplicity: few core elements, and complex.
★★★?? - - Meaning: The crescent shape and colour make me think of sand dunes, maybe your nation is in, or has deserts. Despite the possible desert symbolism, your flag feels somewhat cold, perhaps due to the white lining and meticulous design. This makes me think that either your nation is cold in the sense of being clinical and scientific, or considering the dark red background, that your nation is cold hearted and somewhat totalitarian. Possibly both.

Overall rating: ★★★★☆

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Nation's comment after rating:
No comment yet


2016/10/08- Flag rating for Automutus

★★★☆☆ - Uniqueness: A city is something that I can't say I recall seeing in any other flags, and having the flag elements bottom-aligned is also something rather uncommon. The main problem however, is that at low resolution/lighting, none of it can be seen, and your flag appears to be just a black rectangle.
★★★☆☆ - Design: The main flag elements are good, though slightly off-centre (if you intended them to be to one side, you should make it more noticeably so), and I'm generally against text on a flag.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: Black is pretty much the only colour for a silhouette, and red is a good choice for the sunrise behind it. The dark grey background however, leaves little contrast with the black city, and dark red text.
★★★★☆ - Simplicity: The most complex thing on this flag is the text, other than that, the 2 overlapping core elements can be constructed of basic shapes, without any need for overelaborateness.
★★★★? - - Meaning: The city and grey sky behind it, make me think your nation is an industrial one, the sunrise behind it could indicate that your nation is "at the beginning of its day" (i.e. it intends to make a lot of progress, and last for a long time). It could also be a sunset, a red moon, or light pollution, but these seem less likely. From the dark colouration and red, rather than golden sunrise, I'm guessing your nation is also dark in some way.

Overall rating: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:
Good job on all those awesome ratings!


2016/10/08- Flag rating for Vultyak

★★★☆☆ - Uniqueness: Both the background and foreground elements are uncommon, however, due to low colour contrast, they become difficult to distinguish at low resolution and brightness.
★★★★☆ - Design: The shape, sizing, and position of elements is good, but the thin white outline of the stars is something that will be lost at lower resolutions.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: There isn't enough contrast between the two shades of red, and perhaps there could be more contrast between the dark red and black too.
★★★★☆ - Simplicity: Very good, a few simple core elements on a simple background.
★★★?? - - Meaning: The red with stars makes me think of China, and majority of red makes me think your country is communist, however, the nature of the stars makes me think there is a slight hierarchy or such, with the one big star representing the leader/elite/government, and the other stars, which appear equal, represent everyone else. The darkness of your flag perhaps reflects the darkness of your nation too.

Overall rating: ★★★★☆

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Nation's comment after rating:
No comment yet


2016/10/12- Flag rating for The Interstellar Empire of Gnark

★★★★☆ - Uniqueness: I feel like I've seen the planet on the flag somewhere before, but not in combination with other elements as you have done. At smaller resolutions, the sword isn't discernible, and the countries on the planet, and stars, just look like blob, but the overall trianguloid arrangement of these blobs mean the flag is still fairly recognisable.
★★★☆☆ - Design: This is a fairly detail-rich flag, and as such, loses more detail the smaller the flag becomes. The stars seem irregularly shaped, and although their placement seems somewhat random too, they don't come into conflict with any other elements, or cause any spacing problems. The sizing and spacing is all good, though the sword could be thicker, to make it more noticeable at lower resolutions.
★★★★☆ - Colour scheme: The colours are good, and the stars are spaced appropriately so the white doesn't overlap the white of the countries. The solitary red element is a nice touch. Usually I would say that dark blue next to black can be an issue, but in this case, I don't think it matters, as the elements (the white and red) are very clear. The only problem I see, is the light-grey of the sword against the white countries, makes it somewhat difficult to notice (but a large chunk of the blade sticking out the bottom of the planet largely negates this issue)
★★★☆☆ - Simplicity: While one could say that your flag only has a few elements, which is good, if you consider every country as an element on its own, then the situation is completely reversed.
★★★?? - - Meaning: A planet and stars on a black background immediately makes me think of space, so your nation is probably technologically advanced. A sword can symbolise military power, the sword on top of the planet could indicate that the planet is either under military rule, or military protection, and from the lightness of the core elements, I would guess the latter. The red star seems like it may have more meaning than the other stars, perhaps the flash of red is a warning, i.e. mess with us at your own risk.

Overall rating: ★★★★☆

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Nation's comment after rating:
No comment yet


2016/10/13- Flag rating for Moron selfishness

★★☆☆☆ - Uniqueness: Text flags are generally not that memorable, and at small size, the text becomes illegible. At smaller size and low resolution, the text become discernible, and the flag just looks white.
★★☆☆☆ - Design: Text is generally a bad design choice for flags, and your choice of font is far from good, but it does seem like you've put some effort into dividing the flag into 4 sections, and 3 rows.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: Plain black (or dark grey it seems) and white causes no issues of colour clashing or differentiation of colours, but it's also doesn't have the same impact a colourful flag would have.
★★☆☆☆ - Simplicity: Most flags with text have it in addition to other key symbolism, and can be considered an afterthought, but as this flag is basically all text, and text characters themselves are not simple, the font you have used also seems more complex than other fonts.
★★??? - - Meaning: I'm guessing that education in your nation isn't a government priority... or even an afterthought. The vast white expanse of the background perhaps represents an emptiness in your nation, or in the hearts and minds of your people. I'm not getting any strong symbolism from your flag, so I'd guess that your nation doesn't really have many strong stances on most things, and is fairly middle-of-the-road on most issues (or just doesn't care)
Overall rating: ★★☆☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating*:

Moron selfishness wrote:OMG! O-M-G! OOOOO MMMMM GGGGG !!!!!...
...You gave my flag TWO stars!!! TWO STARS !!! T-W-O !!!...
...OH WHY? WHY??? WHY?????????????????????????????????...

*edited for shortness. It was a lot longer than this.


2016/10/15- Flag rating for The Kingdom of Pruso-Courland

Pruso-Courland wrote:Would thee shal rank my flag, please?

★★★☆☆ - Uniqueness: This is what I would consider a "coat of arms"-flag, which, while inherantly unique, can be somewhat dificult to identify for those unfamiliar with the particular heraldry.
★★★★☆ - Design: Although there are several overlapping elements, they are all clearly identifiable and distinguishable.
★★★☆☆ - Colour scheme: The colours themselves are good and do not clash, but the lack of colour variaty makes the flag feel somewhat flat.
★★☆☆☆ - Simplicity: The small number of elements is good, but the complexity of the lion (and to an extent, the swords as well) makes this flag somewhat complex.
★★★?? - - Meaning: From the swords, shield and general clasic heraldry, I would guess that your nation has a strong "medieval-europe" history or influence to it. The lion is a traditional heradic symbol meaning bravery, nobility and such, and red has a meaning of patriotism, both of which may indicate a strong leadership and loyal citizens of your country. Grey is representitive of purity and inteligence, so perhaps your coutry values education or something. I'm not too sure what the swords mean, but being in front of the shield and pointing up, I would guess indicates an active, rather than passive military.

Overall rating: ★★★☆☆

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Nation's comment after rating:
No comment yet

New fakeland

Edited:

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