Creating a TSN RP Community(Post is out of character)

Forming a permanent crew for the TSN Falcon has presented a few issues. The initial posts about recruiting for the TSN Falcon gained a lot of interest. The problems that occurred were some people wanted to join who could not play regularly, and more than 5 people allied, so had to be turned down. A couple who were successful and joined left soon after due to various reasons (unfortunate hardware issues, things life throw at you etc). As a result, the TSN Falcon has remained in dry dock, and the RP group has not really developed anywhere.

What I wanted to do was begin with a core group on the TSN Falcon, train them and fly a number of missions, promote officers to higher ranks, and eventually have someone who I felt could be promoted to a command rank and given their own vessel. This someone would have to be a regular player, who had learned the playing style of the RP and would help develop my vision of forming a TSN RP community. The problem was, it would take a long time, an people wanting to join would have to wait.

Last night I came up with a solution. I would create a more inclusive RP community and TSN organisation, in which players could join, regardless of their experience or availability. Those who played regularly could eventually serve aboard TSN vessels and progress in to higher ranks, and those who played when they could, would still be able to participate. I have typed up a document and posted it on the Artemis Wiki with all the details. Players will be organised in to two categories  Active Players and Casual Players. Basically, all players join the TSN as Officer Cadets. They are effectively members of the TSN Academy. Officer Cadets are not required to be online on a regular basis, or be part of a permanent crew. They can play along with any other officer on an Academy ship. The Academy ships would be temporary vessels set up by Officer Cadets (although the same crew could play the same vessel week in week out if they wished it).

Official TSN vessels will operate for Active Players only. Initially there will be one TSN vessel, the TSN Falcon. When a position is available on an official TSN vessel, Officer Cadets can apply for the position. They will then undergo an Officer Examination/ Interview and if successful will be given the rank of Ensign and assigned a duty aboard an official TSN vessel. One they have reached the rank of Ensign, it is up to the Captain to determine which officers will be put forward for promotion and Active Players will be able to move up through the ranks. There are several paths to choose: moving in to a command position, becoming a senior officer and being chosen to join TSN command (the controlling committee of the community) or joining a TSN corps in order to develop a particular area (e.g. the Flying Corps, Engineering Corps etc.) Each time a player is put forward for promotion, they will undergo an examination for that rank to see if they are suitable. Members of the TSN Command will form an assessment board to test the officer.

I am also going to begin writing a document on officer 'etiquette' to give details on how to participate in the RP games (e.g. calling people by their rank etc).

I have already posted some of the details, and I am re-writing the RP wiki page and making it more available to people. Hopefully I will get more interest and can get this community in motion.

Captain Xavier (Captain of TSN Falcon; member of TSN Commmand)
The TSN (RP Group document)

Halfway and Status Reports

Well, it looks as though I have reached the halfway point with the Officer's Handbooks. I have three more to write; Captain, Tactical and Helm. In the original Officer's Handbook, these three sections were the ones that I focused on predominantly, however after considering how I have expanded the Engineering, Communication and Science Officer's content, I feel that the remaining three sections can definitely be added to and improved.

After scanning through the original content, the new content includes much more information on interacting with other bridge officers as well as with the Captain. In each of the new handbooks, I have included guidelines for giving a Status Report giving details on the information that a particular officer should provide to their Captain. I have presented them in a hierarchical order, with what I consider to be the most important information at the top, and have tried to ensure that no officer has the same information to report.

The Status Reports are guidelines and recommendations, and I wouldn't expect officers to use them in a strict manner. What I really wanted was to provide officers with a clear list of the essential information that they should and could present to the Captain based on the information available to them. The Status Reports are there to make the officer aware of what they need to focus on a report. In addition, it meant the Captain would know who to ask for particular information, and by making each list different nothing would be repeated; conflicting information and excess 'bridge chatter' would be reduced.

I am not sure which Handbook to work on now. I am going to leave the Captain's Handbook till last, as having detail on how to fulfil the other roles will dictate how a Captain will interact with and use those officers.  For the Tactical Handbook, I want to include details on weapons and how to employ them to maximum effect against an enemy. Although Tactical Officer could be considered a relatively straight forward role (just point and shoot), I think more experienced officers should be considering how the can effectively disrupt and destroy enemy vessels, for example by manually targeting specific systems. The Helms Officer role I consider to be the more challenging of the two to write about. I don't want to present a list of manoeuvres and positioning that the Helms Officer should follow, rather give ideas and guides on how to fly the ship more effectively, just like the Engineer's Handbook. I never wanted to provide a list of presets, but give ideas and guidelines to improve the Engineer's ability and effectiveness.

Anyway, that is all for now. To find all of the TSN Handbooks that I have created, follow this link: TSN Handbooks.

Thanks for reading!

Progress of The Comms Officer Handbook

The Communication Officer's Handbook is almost complete and I will be made available shortly. In writing it, I have realised that as Comms Officer you need great strategic and tactical awareness (as well as a little luck) to really fulfil the role to best effect. In a sector with multiple allied ships, a Comms Officer can be an immensely important member of the crew.

Most of the writing has been of a tactical nature, from effectively coordinating allied combat vessels (such as Destroyers) to anticipating the requirements of the ship and organising the production of specific ordinance. From personal experience, I have seen how an effective Comms Officer can influence the outcome of a mission and can recall several instances when they have done so.

As a Lieutenant-Commander, I recall a battle in a heavily contested sector. The enemy had launched a major raid against the sector, and the vessel I was serving on had been assigned to defend the starbases there. Our capabilities were stretched to the limit and multiple enemy fleets were closing on several different starbases. As we were dealing with one fleet and defending a base, a second enemy was manoeuvring to attack a base located a distance away from us. Our comms officer had already anticipated this, and had ordered allied vessels to move in to defend the base. Although some Destroyers were lost, the enemy were delayed long so that we could dispatch the first enemy fleet and quickly move to join our allies and defend the stricken starbase. The base was saved because of the comms officer and the fact that he had maintained an awareness of the situation and planned accordingly.

(Since writing this, I have completed and released the Communication Officer's Handbook on the Artemis Wiki)

TSN Handbooks