Starbase 118 Ops New Officer Handbook: Difference between revisions

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Going hand in hand with seeking help with simming format; one of the unique and wonderful things about a Starbase is that the stability of location lends itself to serial storytelling.  This means that plot elements frequently tie together in an ongoing storyline.

Whether you are new to the game or simply confused about a story point it is never a bad thing to ask for clarification or more information about the ongoing plot either IC or OOC!  We are happy to help explain things for any player and help you see how the story ties together, grows and develops - as well as how you can share in the story and help guide its future course!

Here are some things particular to Starbase life:

'''How to arrive at Starbase 118:'''  

* Newly graduated cadets are frequently already on the base, having completed their final exam at the StarBase 118 extension.  In this case an officer will meet you on the academy green and introduce you to the base proper.

* Newly assigned officers may arrive on any transport that docks at the base.

'''Changes from StarBase 118 Academy to 118 Ops'''

So you've done it!  You've graduated and been assigned to StarBase 118.  What does that move all entail?

* In the academy you'll be living in dorms.  Once you are posted onto the StarBase you will get personal quarters up in the habitat area.  Quarters on StarBase 118 tend to be more spacious and comfortable than ones on starships.   

* Unless you request otherwise, all officers are given single quarters.

And of course you'll now be working in the StarBase proper, interacting with your department head and officers from other departments!

'''Housing on StarBase 118'''

* Cadets live in dorms in the academy levels of StarBase 118 (located at the bottom of the base)

* Junior officers (Ensign and Lieutenant JG) are required to live in the provided Starfleet habitat areas.  (Officers with special circumstances can petition to live elsewhere)

* Senior Officers (Lieutenant and up) may select upgraded Starfleet quarters or find civilian provided quarters in the commercial sector if they so choose.

* There are also a limited number of private quarters on the station.  While single quarters are common private quarters are unlisted in the registry and provide the occupant privacy.  These quarters have a long waiting list.

Officers of the rank of Lieutenant and above may seek quarters in the Commercial sector.  While Starfleet quarters are automatically assigned and provided, living areas in the Commercial Sector are independently owned and operated.  Finding an apartment, condo or house in that section is exactly like finding an apartment, condo or house in present day society.

Officers with families, who lived on the station prior to joining Starfleet or with other special circumstances can circumvent the usual quarters regulations by petitioning the StarBase 118 Housing Authority.  Requests usually take 48 hours to process.

'''Transportation Around StarBase 118'''

How do you get around a base that's miles wide?

* Transporters are a resource hog, so transporter usage is limited outside of emergency and mission based transports.

* Civilians get an allocation of 3 personal transports per week

* Moving floors - some walkways have moving floors to speed lateral transportation along the longest passages on the starbase.

* Escalators - some sections have escalators where turbolifts would be inefficent.

<div style="background: LightGrey; border: 1px solid #BD934F; margin: 1em auto; padding: 0 10px; width: 400px; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;">

Message Body:</span>

<span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;">(( Ensign Ricky's Quarters, StarBase 118 Ops ))</span>

<span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;">Ricky: Hello, world!</span>

<span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;">T'tala: Response.</span>

<span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;">T'tala: Response.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;">Ensign James Ricky</span><br>

<span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;">Security Officer</span><br>

</div>

   

The Starbase crew is one that focuses on characters. When it comes to describing your character or their surroundings, remember...more is better. While a basic description tells us the simple actions that are being completed by your character, elaboration and the addition of thoughts or background via descriptive paragraphs conveys a much deeper message to the other writers in the group. Not only will we be able to see what your character is doing, but what they see, feel, smell, hear, and how they react to any such stimuli. Regardless of what kind of character you play, this adds depth that can make any character become more than just an idea on paper.

As an example, lets take Bob. Officer Bob walks into a room, and Bob's writer can choose to portray this action in one of two ways:

or

As you can see, there is a pretty big difference between the two, and not just in word count! The second version gives much more insight into what the character is thinking and feeling, as well as what the room actually looks and feels like. Just like the writers behind these characters, they have numerous senses that can be used to describe any given situation. The more ways you can think of to describe your characters senses, the better!

Starbase 118 prides itself on its serious and realistic themes, its free form nature and its interesting character driven plots. On the Starbase, we believe that Star Trek and all good drama in general is about the characters, first and foremost. While we do have missions, plots and external forces at play here, our primary focus is on our characters and displaying strong character development.

Consistently maintaining a sim count higher than the bare minimum (generally 20+ a month) and answering your tags with alacrity looks very good for your development, keeps your character involved in the plot and allows for a much more fun simming experience for the whole crew.

Not every voyage is smooth sailing, and while simming there are many issues that you might encounter. Some of them are general, while others are very specific in nature. In any event, they should all be treated with caution. Remember, we are all here to have fun, but we are also all human. Sometimes it is personalities that clash, while other times it is the actions of a character or group of characters. The Academy goes over some of these issues, especially when building a bio for your character. Here is a more in depth look at the problems that you may face along the way.

Telepaths

Telepathy is a very powerful sense, most commonly found in Vulcans and Betazoids (and others). As such, caution should be advised when simming telepathy.

The best way to sim telepathy is as just another passive sense. In addition to reading someone's body language, you could also sense basic emotions from them; distress, joy, sadness, pain and anger are examples of 'passive' sensing. You might be able to sense a Romulan assassin creeping up behind you, for instance, or that the Klingon warrior standing before you is just a hologram. The range of passive sensing would be, generally speaking, line of sight. This makes it a balanced, well reasoned sense.

Telepaths such as Betazoids can "talk" privately to those who can hear them. While useful, speaking telepathically to someone while others are in the room is considered very rude- it's the equivalent of pulling out your cell phone to send someone an SMS while they're standing right there, so others can't see what you're saying.

It should be noted that forcefully entering the mind of someone who does not consent to such an action (to read their memories, to alter their thought patterns or to damage their psyche) is a very serious criminal action and can be humiliating for the victim. Starfleet officers and civilians alike are expected to refrain from these actions, except where faced with no other choice. While there are situations where this is appropriate, such as when simming a 'bad guy', it is important to ask if you have any reservations about it at all. In this case, it is better to ask permission than forgiveness later.

Of course, nothing comes for free. Telepathy presents its own set of problems and issues; sometimes two people just don't get along, but will act nice to each other to preserve their feelings. How would you feel if you could tell the person you were talking to really didn't like you? Some people distrust telepaths. How will your character deal with this prejudice?

When the ship's in distress, perhaps your character is overwhelmed by the rush of fear and panic into their minds. How do they deal with that? Almost any "power" can be turned into a weakness with enough creative work, and weaknesses make our characters that much more realistic. It is as if they are real people and we are watching them grow. Thus, exploring the downside to any 'powers' your character has is often applauded.

The same goes for other powers that are deemed to provide too much power to a single player. Most of these issues are ironed out while you are still in the Academy, but some main remain. Your mentor and the command staff will work with you on making your character more realistic and less powerful, but don't think that it will make your writing any less interesting! Remember, we pride ourselves on realism here, so keep this in mind when creating PNPCs and simming your main character.

While we, the writers, can read any sim in the fleet (and know what's going on all over the ship) your characters do not. Part of realistically playing a character is making sure that the character only reacts to what they know. There's nothing wrong with picking up hints or clues about what's going on all over the ship, but even powerful telepaths should be mindful to keep some surprise in store for their characters.

It can be frustrating to spend time and sims building up to an event, be it a major component of the plot or just some story arc you are following, and end up having to salvage it from ruins when another player 'claims' they knew what was happening. As such, be aware of how much knowledge you have when you are writing a sim and make sure that you keep your character 'in the dark'.

Yeah, baby! The privileges of rank.

Every writer in the fleet has both an IC and an OOC rank. In most circumstances, these two are the same. Where writers choose, for example, to sim an enlisted crewman rather than an officer, or to have their character decline a promotion for roleplaying reasons, their OOC rank and their IC rank may differ.

Only your main character will get ranks and promotions officially. You may sim an enlisted crewman of any rank, but all officers must be the same rank as your main character or lower. This means that if you are a Lieutenant, then you can not sim a PNPC that is a Lieutenant Commander.

You may, temporarily, sim an NPC of any rank up to Captain (such as the Captain of a visiting vessel)- but their presence should be appropriate and their interactions brief. This is not an opportunity to order around the Lieutenant Commanders, no matter how much fun that could hypothetically be.

To be promoted means that both your commanding officer and the rest of the fleet (you'll be surprised who reads your sims...) have judged you worthy of being recognized for your efforts. In most cases, to meet the criteria for a promotion a minimum amount of time served is required in addition to other criteria, including some things mentioned in prior sections of this handbook.

*'''Ensign'''

''All writers, even those who chose to sim an enlisted crewman, begin their careers as Ensigns. Ensigns are expected to have a basic knowledge of how to sim at SB118, should be meeting the monthly post requirements as set out by the SB118 constitution and should be eagerly contributing to their ship's duty post.Ensigns of particular talent and flair may be allocated the role of 'department head', but generally they are assigned as a subordinate to a senior officer in their field.''

*'''Lieutenant (Junior Grade)'''

''Lieutenant (Junior Grade), or Lieutenant JG, is the second rank you can earn during your stay on StarBase 118 Ops. To reach the rank of Lieutenant (Junior Grade) a writer must meet all of the criteria as listed on the main Fleet site. You can find specific requirements for promotion from Ensign to Lieutenant (Junior Grade) here.Note: A Lieutenant Junior Grade is generally addressed as simply 'Lieutenant'.''

*'''Lieutenant'''

''Lieutenant is the third rank you can earn during your stay at Starbase 118. To reach the rank of Lieutenant a writer should once again meet all fleet-wide requirements as outlined here.''

*'''Lieutenant Commander'''

   

These officers have a history of high level simming ability and a secure grasp of how things work on StarBase 118 Ops and in the Fleet. Because our mentors have the responsibility of shaping some of the Fleet's future leaders, we do not take this job lightly. On the contrary, to be a mentor means both dedication to the rules and setup of the Starbase 118 Fleet as well as knowledge of writing and simming overall.

   

At the time of writing, there are a vast number of fleet-wide OOC activities you can become involved in!

   

There are many players throughout the Fleet that enjoy writing more than just on their own vessel. After you reach the rank of Lieutenant, you are permitted to have one other 'main' character on another ship. This other character is known as a secondary. This is not, however, the only extra avenue of writing within the Starbase 118 fleet. On the contrary, there are many other places that encourage your creativity to flow.

   

It might seem like there are lots of different things to learn and understand, but most of this will come second nature after you are with us for just a little while. Many officers already model the behavior that is encouraged, so it is easy to pick up on the good habits of others. There is a great team of officers on the Starbase, and we all learn and grow together.

[[Category:StarBase 118 Ops]]