Post of the Month--January 2013

It's time to announce the first Post of the Month for the year and for January the award goes to a player who has been with us for a little over a month. However, in that month he has gotten off to an excellent start with some great quality posts.

Here's one of them:

"Sing us a song, you're the pianoman..." Alex hummed as he sat on the deck of a shuttlecraft, working on calibrating the power distribution system. Ever since they had replaced the EPS conduits due to cannibalizing parts in the last mission, there was a notable performance deviation with the shuttles. He had managed to track the problem back to the new conduits; for some reason, there was a partial block after the engines and power was being siphoned off before reaching the rest of the systems. You'd think this would be an engineer's problem...he mused, leaning against the bulkhead and entering readings from his scanner into a PADD.

Making a few small adjustments to the flow regulator, Alex slowly got up, stretching his sore muscles. It had been a rough night, and his body was now hinting at what his mind couldn't remember. "...Sing us a song tonight...Well, we're all in the mood for a melody..." Moving over to the pilot seat, he sat down and powered up the shuttle, waiting for the automatic pre-flight check to run it's course. Comparing the new information with his PADD, he smiled with satisfaction. That's a bit better. Shutting her down, he glanced quickly at the chronometer before the panel went blank. One down, one to go, Alex thought, going to pack up his equipment. Right on time. He was looking forwards to the end of his shift; there were rumors of a live band in the mess for that evening and he didn't want to miss it.

Even though he was still new to the ship, Alex felt a slight tremble under his feet as they entered warp before the inertial dampeners compensated. His Chief had mentioned that it was a little quirk of Gibson's, and no matter what the engineering team did, she would always let her crew know while jumping to top speed. Idly wondering where they were heading in such a hurry, he finished packing up his kit and headed to the other Type-9 for round two. "...And you've got us feeling alright...La La Lalalala..."

Please congratulate Crewman Alexander Wu for a superb post that goes into exquisite detail, really painting a picture of the role he performs on the USS Gibson. Commanding Officer, Commander Riley T. Munro said of the post; "This is excellent, a good bit of casual human traits, with an extensive knowledge of engineering mixed in. I enjoyed it, and he is an awesome addition to the ship!"

Keep your eyes open for those rare and wonderful posts and if you do spot one, don't forget to send it to your Commanding Officer before the end of the month.

Q&A With Gettysburg Commander

With the launch of the fleet's next starship just over a day away, we sat down with soon-to-be-Captain Lance Krol for chat about his time in Shadow Fleet and his future position on the USS Gettysburg.

A very big thank you to Lance for taking the time out to answer our questions. Like him, we're very excited about the launch of our next starship and it's a sure thing that she's in good hands.

Until February 1st...

How did you feel when you were told you would be running the next starship SIMM?

I was thrilled, of course! The idea of running a bigger Galaxy-class was exciting to me because I immediately recognized it as a chance to take on bigger responsibilities and contribute even more to Shadow Fleet as a whole. Plus, I'll be honest, when I was called to take on the command of the Churchill I was ill-prepared, although I like to think I did an okay job overall anyway. The Gettysburg is a chance to start afresh for me, and I'm really glad to take it!

Did you have any say in choosing the roster for the Gettysburg?

The roster, like those before it, was decided largely by the admiralty, but I had a few choices to make that I'm quite glad to have made - the first was Lieutenant Commander Price, who has been an exceptional help to me over the course of my command by doing all the work helping me with my work. I really owe most of my success in command to him, even though I did get there by myself. My second was Petty Officer Sukal, who has proven himself an exemplary crewmember and has, in my opinion, an incredibly bright future ahead of him. My third was Mr. Benjamin Bradley, who wanted to come along with me for reasons unknown! So, I gave him special mention because he's an exemplary poster, and I'm always ready to help out a fellow engineer!

What do you intend to do differently with the Gettysburg as opposed to the other ships in the fleet?

For a start, I've got this system that was worked out a while back. I give each department head a taste of command months in advance of their actual placement by requiring them to fill out a monthly report - much like the one I myself have to fill out for Admiral Kawolsky. This contains any concerns they have for their department and any honorable mentions of crewmembers who have gone above and beyond the call of duty without me noticing, as well as any promotions I may have missed. This is a quite unorthodox system but I like to think it will allow them to adapt to command without dealing with too much of the stress first.

As well as this, I'm planning to introduce optional posting training in specific departments for those who wish to take part, such as security training and engineering training. This will take place in the holodeck, and will involve a quick scenario which I'll expect everyone taking part to deal with in one post - the best post wins, and I'll keep a tally of wins in a pinned thread at the top of the holodeck once this feature is launched. These two measures will only really apply once the roster is more populated but I'm excited for getting them launched as soon as possible!

You've risen through the ranks pretty fast. How does it feel now that you're one of the most senior players in Shadow Fleet?
Well, gosh, I dunno. I've never considered myself 'senior', if you know what I mean, because I haven't really been here very long - most people won't remember me as a yellow-shirt, but it feels like it was last month, or maybe the month before that. My quick advancement feels like happy accident but I guess I must've been doing something right! If I'm honest, I feel slightly displaced - I want to be out there posting with you guys, but backstage the command position requires so much work, especially in the run-up to the Gettysburg launch, that I haven't been able to do so much posting as I'd like. I used to be able to win PotM any time I put my mind to it (some of you may remember Lance's 'I am your God' speech), but nowadays most of it's just paperwork and I get most of my job satisfaction from helping my crew work to its best. But I digress. Overall, I'm happy with my position but I guess I think I might have advanced too quickly.

Are you going to miss posting on the Churchill?

Of course. There's a great community on the Churchill and I've come to think of most, if not all, of you as my friends. As well as that, I've made most of my advancement on the Churchill, though I did have a brief opening stint on the Discovery all those years and light-years ago. I've come to think of it as sort of a home for Lance, who is a sad, displaced shell of a man when you come to the core of his character, and so transferring ship comes with all the emotional strain of moving out of your childhood home, for those who are familiar with the feeling.

Do you have any words of advice for the Churchill's new commanding officer, Commander Thompson?

Well, I'd tell you not to believe for a moment that what Alyssa calls a physical is anything like one, but you probably already know that having known her for longer than me. Just stay away from the iron maiden in the medbay and you'll be fine!

Finally, if you could pick just one word to sum up your time in Shadow Fleet, what would it be?

Stupefying!

Forum Upgrade Complete

We are pleased to announce that the planned forum upgrade has now been completed.

Taking a little less than a day to complete, the upgrade occurred ahead of schedule and with no immediate problems and as a result, you will also notice that the Instant Messaging bar has been re-added to the bottom of the page.

Most importantly, we now benefit from our own dedicated server making for faster forum load times, increased storage space and the room for future expansion as the fleet increases in size.

The upgrade may take up to 48 hours to fully propagate for all members, however, if you experience any problems don't hesitate to email support@shadowfleet.org.

Replacement Command Staff for USS Churchill

Following on from our previous announcement concerning the USS Gettysburg, we am now pleased to reveal the two officers chosen to lead the crew of the Churchill from February 1st onwards.

Selected to command the Intrepid-class vessel is Lieutenant Commander Reece Thompson who will transfer from his current posting on the Gibson with promotion to the rank of Commander. Mr Thompson has served in Shadow Fleet for nearly four years, working his way from the junior rank of Ensign to become a senior Lieutenant Commander. Prior to his service on the Gibson, Commander Thompson served as First Officer on the USS Discovery so he is no stranger to the command position.

Assisting Commander Thompson as First Officer will be the Churchill's existing Head of Security, Lieutenant Commander John Brown. Mr Brown has been a long-serving member of Shadow Fleet, having held Department Head positions on no less than three of our ships. He brings a wealth of experience to the role of First Officer and I am sure he will continue to serve the Churchill well.

As previously mentioned, these promotions will take effect upon the launch of the USS Gettysburg, currently scheduled for February 1st. Until then, please congratulate these two officers on their success.

50, 000 Mark Reached!

We are delighted to announce that the 50,000 post mark was surpassed today!

This milestone figure represents the incredible efforts by each and every one of you - our community. It shows that together we can create some great posts, whether they be in missions, general discussions or just plain fun!

In addition, we are also pleased to say that in just the first two weeks of the New Year, you have together created an incredible 80 new topics, posted a magnificent 1924 new posts and welcomed 3 new members to the fleet.

Keep up the great work Shadow Fleet, and here's to our continuing success through 2013.

Bring on the 100,000 mark!

USS Gettysburg Crew Roster Announced

Following on from our official announcement of the opening of our next SIMM, the USS Gettysburg, we are pleased to reveal the full crew roster of those who will be serving on her.

 

The Galaxy-class USSGettysburg

The USS Gettysburg will be the fleet's first Galaxy-class starship SIMM, its purpose to reignite the ethos of exploration and discovery beyond the fringes of Federation space. Commanding our first heavy cruiser will be Commander Lance Krol with promotion to the rank of Captain, who will be assisted by his current First Officer, Lieutenant Commander Connor Price, who will also be receiving a promotion to the rank of Commander.

Take a look at the full crew roster listed below:

Commanding Officer: Captain Lance Krol
First Officer: Commander Connor Price
Chief Security/Tactical Officer: Lieutenant Kirok
Security/Tactical Crewman: Crewman Recruit Revek Tre'el
Chief Engineering Officer: Ensign Safi Larson
Engineering Crewman: Warp Core Specialist Benjamin Bradley
Operations Crewman: Sensor Systems Specialist Sukal
Chief Science Officer: Lieutenant T'Ra Jones
Medical Crewman: Senior Medical Technician Rennan Protheus

Full instructions for those transferring to the Gettysburg will be made available in due course, but if you didn't get a place on our newest ship, don't worry! There will be plenty of opportunities for transfer later on down the line.

The Gettysburg is due to open with her first mission entitled "Unwritten Future" this February 1st.

Cadet of the Year (with Admiral Kawolsky) and Player of the Year (with Admiral O'Neill)

With both the SIMM and Task Group awards now over, it is time to focus our attention to the annual fleet-level awards. There's only two to present but they both recognize the hard work of our members in making us a real contender on the Star Trek RPG front.

In my capacity as Acting Academy Commandant, I am delighted to be presenting the first award today in the form of Cadet of the Year. This is awarded to the player who has shown creativity in writing the best academy course of the entire year. Without further ado, I am proud to announce that Lieutenant Archangel T'Koris has been chosen for this award due to her excellent standard of writing and verbal reasoning skills. She answered each level of her exam with intelligent responses and demonstrated professionalism throughout. A well deserved award, I am sure you will agree. Congratulations!

Kawolksy

Greetings Everyone,


I hope everyone has had a good holiday during the Winter break. I am making it Winter break instead of Christmas break for a number of reasons which some of you might figure out faster then others. Before I continue, I would like to apologize if there has been any downtime in the past week. I kinda forgot to pay the hosting bill as I was kinda out of action due to err, Winter related illness what tends to hate me.

Now, for the presentation of the Player of the Year award. I have watched nearly the entire fleet this year either as hidden or active.  This year I present the award to Lieutenant Kirok for outstanding achievements. Kirok has been online constantly, dedicated to both the simm and the fleet, committed to his quality posting and also has made a concerted effort to get to know other members in the entire Shadow Fleet community.

Congratulations to you Kirok and I hope you keep up the good work.

Chris Newberry
Shadow Fleet CO/CEO

Task Group Alpha Awards Ceremony With Admiral Kawolsky

TASK GROUP ALPHA

Awards Ceremony - January, 2013

As the individual SIMM awards draw to a close, it's now time to reflect back on the performance of Task Group Alpha as a whole in what is the first awards ceremony of the new year. Before we begin, I would like to thank each and every one of your for the effort you have put into making your own unique SIMMs the best they can be. I realize we have experienced peaks and troughs recently, but overall you have remained dedicated and submitted some quality posts to the boards.

Anyway, without further ado:

The Unit Citation is awarded to all players of a SIMM deemed to be the most active over the last six month period. As before, I had an extremely difficult decision to make. All of the SIMMs in TGA have performed equally well but I do believe that one has shone out as being slightly more active than the other two. I am proud to award the officers and crew of the USS Churchill the Unit Citation. Congratulations Commander Krol.





This leads me nicely onto the Distinguished Command Award. Due to his excellent ability to keep things moving on the Churchill coupled with the fact he is regularly online, I am delighted to award this one to Commander Lance Krol. Congratulations!

The final presentation I would like to make today is in recognition of one person's efforts within our Task Group. Since joining, I have continually received excellent reports about one player in particular. Not only is this player always online, but they have contributed some brilliant posts to their SIMM's storylines, posts that have been recognized through nominations for Post of the Month on more than one occasion. Please congratulate Lieutenant Archangel T'Koris on being awarded the Task Group CO's Commendation!

That officially brings an end to our Task Group awards ceremony. Once more, I would like to thank all of you - the Command Level Officers to Department Heads, to Crewman that are the backbone of our SIMMs - for an extraordinary effort these past six months. Please do keep it up so that we can make 2013 an awesome year!

USS Gettysburg: Coming Soon!

The time has arrived to formally announce our next SIMM in the form of the Galaxy-class USS Gettysburg along with an exciting new launch trailer!

 

The Galaxy-class USS Gettysburg

The Gettysburg, named after Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the site of a major campaign during the American Civil War, will be the fleet's largest ship to date. With a remit to explore the very fringes of Federation space, our newest ship will reignite the ethos of exploration and discovery that Star Trek embodies.

Commanding the Gettysburg will be Commander Lance Krol who will also be receiving promotion to the more appropriate rank of Captain for his previous efforts on the Churchill. Further details, including a full crew roster will be announced in due course but if you wish to serve on this wonderful new SIMM, just let us know by commenting in the discussion topic on Shadow Fleet.

The USS Gettysburg is due for launch on February 1st. If you can't wait until then, check out our announcement trailer on YouTube for more excitement!

A Look Ahead to 2013

2012 has been an exciting, memorable year. And for that, only you - our members - are to thank. As we look back on what a successful year 2012 has been, let us also look forward to the future and the wonderful selection of events we have planned for the new year.

Here's just a taster of what we have planned for 2013:

• January, 2013 -  As we launch our annual Beginning of Year Awards Ceremonies, it's also time to celebrate six years of Shadow Fleet! Get your party hats out 'cos it's sure to be a good one!
• February, 2013 - With the festivities out of the way, we get back down to business with our SIMM missions. From an ancient ship lost to history, to a medical crisis on the Gibson, things are beginning to heat up for our crews.
• April, 2013 - Get set for our third annual "Spread the Word!" Campaign this April. Our biggest recruitment drive of the year, we're sure 2013 will prove a massive success!
• May, 2013 - Prepare for our biggest and most exciting special mission yet! With the release of Star Trek Into Darkness this month, we'll be taking a break from our normal routine to join the crew of the Lexington on a perilous mission!
• July, 2013 - Come July, we'll be celebrating the success of our players with the Mid-Year Awards Ceremonies.
• September, 2013 - The Refer-a-Friend Weekend is back, where we ask you to introduce just one friend to ShadowFleet.org. They don't need to sign up, they don't even need to like it. But as long as they know we're here, that's all we ask.

So there we have it. With several events planned for the coming year, 2013 is sure to be an exciting one. All that's left for us to say is thank you for your efforts throughout 2012 and your continued support as we head into the new year.